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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.

US firm eyes trade case to force Argentina payment
Reuters | 9-Aug-2011
Azurix Corp plans to ask the Obama administration for help in recovering more than $230 million it says it is owned by the government of Argentina. It would be the first time a US company has used the "Section 301" trade law to pressure a foreign government to pay an award decided by an arbitrator in an investment dispute.
keywords: Argentina , investment | BITs , investor-state disputes | ISDS , US , water
Philip Morris v. Uruguay on cigarette branding: Will investor-state arbitration send restrictions on tobacco marketing up in smoke?
Info Justice | 4-Aug-2011
Philip Morris asserts that fair and equitable treatment includes a right to a “stable and predictable regulatory framework” as well as rights under treaties in addition to customary international law.
keywords: Australia , corporate interests , CPTPP , investment | BITs , investor-state disputes | ISDS , New Zealand , Uruguay , US
Twenty Turkish firms file suit against Turkmenistan
| 14-Jul-2011
The government of Turkmenistan faces legal action from twenty Turkish construction firms over broken contracts costing them more than $1 billion in losses, a spokesman representing the companies said on Wednesday.
keywords: ICSID , investment | BITs , investor-state disputes | ISDS , Türkiye , Turkmenistan
Honduras: Tasa de seguridad viola el TLC con EE.UU.
El Heraldo | 14-Jul-2011
Estudian, además, denunciar al Estado de Honduras ante organismos supranacionales.
keywords: Honduras , investor-state disputes | ISDS , US
India rejects clause on litigation
| 4-Jul-2011
Despite a demand by the European Union (EU), India is unlikely to allow a clause in a proposed trade pact with the bloc that permits an overseas investor to sue a host country at an international dispute settlement agency.
keywords: EU , India , investment | BITs , investor-state disputes | ISDS
Bear Creek apelará a TLC entre Perú y Canadá para mantener mina en Puno
Terra | 29-Jun-2011
La minera canadiense Bear Creek Mining anunció que recurrirá al TLC entre el Perú y Canadá para defender la inversión y continuidad del proyecto minero Santa Ana.
keywords: Canada , investor-state disputes | ISDS , Peru
First a gold rush, then the lawyers
| 28-Jun-2011
Pacific Rim is suing the Salvadoran government in an international investment court, one of scores of cases in recent years in which frustrated oil, gas and mining investors, using provisions of trade agreements, have sought to recoup losses from mostly developing countries.
keywords: CAFTA , Canada , El Salvador , environment , investment | BITs , investor-state disputes | ISDS , mining , US
Tobacco giant suing Australian govt ’a warning’ for NZ
| 28-Jun-2011
Tobacco giant Philip Morris suing the Australian government for introducing plain packaging laws for tobacco should send shockwaves through this country as it seeks a free trade deal involving the US, says an academic critic of the deal.
keywords: actions | resistance , corporate interests , CPTPP , health , investor-state disputes | ISDS , New Zealand , US
Canadian mining firm threatens legal action against Peru
| 27-Jun-2011
Canada’s Bear Creek Mining Corp. is threatening a legal challenge against Peru after its mining rights were revoked in a move that raises the risk for other resource companies doing business in the mineral-blessed South American country.
keywords: actions | resistance , Canada , environment , investment | BITs , investor-state disputes | ISDS , mining , Peru
Julia Gillard stands firm on cigarette plain packaging
| 27-Jun-2011
Prime Minister Julia Gillard says she won’t be intimidated by big tobacco after Philip Morris launched legal action to try to force the government to back down on introducing plain packaging for cigarettes.
keywords: Australia , corporate interests , health , Hong Kong , investment | BITs , investor-state disputes | ISDS