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investor-state disputes | ISDS

Investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS) refers to a way of handling conflicts under international investment agreements whereby companies from one party are allowed to sue the government of another party. This means they can file a complaint and seek compensation for damages. Many BITs and investment chapters of FTAs allow for this if the investor’s expectation of a profit has been negatively affected by some action that the host government took, such as changing a policy. The dispute is normally handled not in a public court but through a private abritration panel. The usual venues where these proceedings take place are the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (World Bank), the International Chamber of Commerce, the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law or the International Court of Justice.

ISDS is a hot topic right now because it is being challenged very strongly by concerned citizens in the context of the EU-US TTIP negotiations, the TransPacific Partnership talks and the CETA deal between Canada and the EU.

New Zealand confirms opposition to ISDS in RCEP
AFTINET | 18-Jul-2025
New Zealand has firmly opposed including Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) provisions in the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) agreement, which covers 15 Asia-Pacific countries.
keywords: investor-state disputes | ISDS , New Zealand , RCEP
French investment protection agreements: an obstacle to the ecological transition
Veblen Institute | 17-Jul-2025
Study on the French network of bilateral investment treaties.
keywords: climate , France , from the movements , investment | BITs , investor-state disputes | ISDS
Les accords de protection des investissements français : un obstacle à la transition écologique
Institut Veblen | 17-Jul-2025
Etude sur le réseau français de traités bilatéraux d’investissements.
keywords: climate , France , from the movements , investment | BITs , investor-state disputes | ISDS
Credit Suisse: un bulldozer juridique menace la Confédération
Watson | 17-Jul-2025
Le feuilleton judiciaire autour du rachat de Credit Suisse occupera la Suisse pendant encore plusieurs années. Un cabinet d’avocats londonien compte attaquer la Confédération en justice – un dossier qui vient s’ajouter à la pile de plaintes déjà déposées contre la Suisse.
keywords: finance | banking | taxes , investor-state disputes | ISDS , Switzerland
Update on status of notice of termination of mining leases
Blue Gold | 16-Jul-2025
Ghana terminated FGRBPL’s mining leases in 2024, prompting BGHL to challenge the decision under the UK-Ghana BIT via arbitration in 2025. If unsuccessful, BGHL risks losing its leases and mining plans. The outcome remains uncertain.
keywords: Ghana , investor-state disputes | ISDS , mining , UK
Costa Rica is facing a multi-million dollar lawsuit for protecting its environment and its communities - and following the law
Linkedin | 16-Jul-2025
A Canadian company is threatening private arbitration under the Canada–Costa Rica investment treaty, claiming Costa Rica violated the treaty by halting a landfill project in Turrúcares, even as the proper domestic legal process is unfolding.
keywords: Canada , Costa Rica , environment , investor-state disputes | ISDS , services
Supporting Honduran communities affected by corporate assault on Honduras: New data reveals gravity of ISDS claims against Honduras
Institute for Policy Studies (IPS) | 15-Jul-2025
From July 14 to 16, the following meeting will be held in Honduras: Without Human Rights, There Is No Energy Sovereignty: A meeting of communities affected by energy projects in southern Honduras, a country facing an avalanche of international arbitration claims in secretive corporate courts, more than a third of which come from the renewable energy sector.
keywords: climate , energy , from the movements , Honduras , human rights , investor-state disputes | ISDS
Solidaridad con las comunidades hondureñas afectadas por las inversiones mafiosas contra Honduras: Nuevos datos revelan la gravedad de las demandas de arbitraje inversionista-estado (ISDS) contra Honduras
TerraJusta | 14-Jul-2025
Del 14 al 16 de julio se realiza en Honduras el Encuentro: Sin derechos humanos, no hay soberanía energética: Encuentro de comunidades afectadas por proyectos energéticos en el sur de Honduras, país que se enfrenta a una avalancha de demandas de arbitraje internacional en tribunales corporativos secretos, de las cuales más de un tercio provienen del sector de las energías renovables.
keywords: climate , energy , from the movements , Honduras , human rights , investor-state disputes | ISDS
Trade tools for climate action: investor-state dispute settlement reform
Council of Foreign Relations | 10-Jul-2025
Although fossil fuel phase-outs are critical to achieving global climate goals, protections granted through Investor-State Dispute Settlement provisions to foreign-owned coal operations expose governments to costly litigation, threatening to thwart state action.
keywords: climate , investor-state disputes | ISDS , ISDS reform
Malaysian civil society groups urge government to reject investor-state dispute settlement clause in RCEP deal
The Edge Malaysia | 9-Jul-2025
Malaysian CSOs have urged the government to reject the inclusion of the ISDS clause in the RCEP agreement. They warn that ISDS allows foreign investors to sue governments over policies safeguarding public interests like health, workers, and the environment, potentially leading to costly legal battles and large payouts detrimental to national budgets.
keywords: agriculture | farmers | food , climate , environment , health , investor-state disputes | ISDS , labour | workers’ rights , RCEP