sovereignty | democracy
For all the talk about third party funding, little has been said about the buying and selling of claims outright.
There is little doubt that the smaller stakeholders and businesses within India’s informal economy have the most to lose, and yet their voices are not being heard.
The European Union’s disproportionate pressure for trade liberalisation risks exacerbating political strains in the last democracy of northern Africa.
Maldives former president Mohamed Nasheed, whose party won a landslide in the archipelago’s parliamentary election, on Tuesday pledged to conduct a thorough probe into deals with China.
Public opposition to the controversial Myitsone Dam project is gaining momentum ahead of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi’s upcoming visit to China.
Former Japanese minister Yamada joined forces with 150 lawyers that have challenged as unconstitutional both the TPP agreement and the government’s decision to abolish the seed protection law.
Documents show the “unfettered” access to ministers and senior politicians enjoyed by secretive think tanks that are “marching the country” to a no-deal Brexit and radical free-trade deals.
Although they will affect huge areas of society, many of these ’rollover’ deals would pass through parliament without any debate or vote.
Investment funds backing a slew of big-dollar corporate lawsuits has boomed over the past decade, fueled by favorable court rulings and investors seeking juicy returns.
The “moonlighting” debate echoes another controversial practice: that of “double hatting”, in which individuals wear two “hats” by simultaneously acting as arbitrators and legal counsel in international investment arbitration.
Combined with the dispute settlement mechanism of international arbitration, investment treaties have been transformed intol "weapons of legal destruction."
ClientEarth has challenged a judgment regarding the European Commission’s decision to keep secret information about controversial investment tribunals in EU international trade deals.
The attempt by the European Parliament administration to exert pressure on a tweet on the EU-Japan trade agreement shocked MEP Younous Omarjeee, who condemned this as an attack on freedom of expression.
Free trade has enabled a few companies to secure monopolies or near-monopolies, which has given rise to massive inequalities.
The Chamber of Deputies approved the request that the Government has to review in detail each and every treaty signed by Chile, as well as future agreements.
These claims come at a significant cost to target countries and their citizens, since these claims will ultimately be paid by a large underrepresented class of stakeholders: the public.
The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership involving 16 nations from Asia-Pacific will impact the lives of over three billion people, yet a new study reveals how the deal fails international standards of transparency and public engagement.
With a global trade war looming and public faith in corporate globalization at an all-time low, secrecy in trade deals cannot be accepted. People have a right to know what is being negotiated in their name.
The high costs and potentially high damages characteristic of ISDS cases have made it a new and highly attractive market for third-party funding.
Globalisation is in crisis because of its almost totalitarian outreach to all areas of everyday life. People feel a loss of control, because their way of life is perceived as subject to trade requests solely for the benefit of globally acting firms.
