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.

RECALCA | 30-Mar-2016
El caso fue dado a conocer por el sitio Primera Página. ”Se trata de Cosigo, de su filial en Colombia y de Tobie Mining and Energy, que decidieron llevar a Colombia bajo una demanda de arbitraje ante principal órgano jurídico central del sistema de las Naciones Unidas en el ámbito del derecho mercantil internacional (que preside Colombia)”.
Basta | 30-Mar-2016
Les coulisses des procédures d’arbitrages : cette discrète juridiction privée internationale qui règle les conflits entre investisseurs.
Economy Watch | 29-Mar-2016
Chinese officials announced that a US-China bilateral investment treaty (BIT) is close to being signed.
Basta! | 29-Mar-2016
Voici venu le temps de la spéculation sur les plaintes que déposent des investisseurs contre des Etats en cas de conflit commercial ou fiscal.
La Verdad | 28-Mar-2016
Probablemente nunca hayan oído hablar del TTIP, el tratado comercial más importante de nuestra historia que actualmente se está negociando entre EEUU y la Unión Europea.
El Diario | 28-Mar-2016
El decano del Colegio de la Abogacía en Barcelona proclama que tratados como el TTIP o el TiSA “debilitan” la profesión ante los “nuevos comercios mercantiles”
The Conversation | 25-Mar-2016
Bilateral investment treaties have been a source of political controversy in recent years. This is clear from the alarming increase in the number of disputes between investors and governments.
Both Ends | 22-Mar-2016
On the need to create sound policy frameworks for investment.
Basta! | 21-Mar-2016
Plusieurs de ces « arbitres » sont critiqués pour leur manque d’impartialité et leurs décisions très souvent favorables aux investisseurs privés, infligeant des amendes de plusieurs milliards de dollars à des Etats au budget limité.
AIDA | 18-Mar-2016
High-altitude wetlands that provide drinking water to more than two million people could become one of the world’s biggest gold and silver mines.