88 research outputs found
International Investment Law in Latin America: Problems and Prospects - Derecho internacional de inversiones extranjeras en América Latina: Problemas y Perspectivas
No full textWith the bilingual volume International Investment Law in Latin America: Problems and Prospects, Attila Tanzi, Alessandra Asteriti, Rodrigo Polanco Lazo and Paolo Turrini provide a regional perspective on one of the liveliest branches of international law by situating it in one of the most dynamic areas of the world.
Latin America has always had an ambivalent relationship with international investment law and, more recently, it has been the home of harsh and resolute criticisms, questioning the ultimate legitimacy of the regime. By bringing together distinguished scholars of this legal field, the volume analyses ongoing trends and draws lessons from the Continent’s past experiences while identifying possible solutions to the important challenges it faces.Con el volumen bilingüe Derecho Internacional de las Inversiones en América Latina: Problemas y Perspectivas, Attila Tanzi, Alessandra Asteriti, Rodrigo Polanco Lazo y Paolo Turrini tienen por objetivo proporcionar una perspectiva regional para una de las ramas más vigorosas del derecho internacional, situándola en una de las áreas más dinámicas del mundo.
Latinoamérica siempre ha tenido una relación ambivalente con el derecho internacional de inversiones y, más recientemente, ha sido el hogar de duras y decididas críticas en su contra, cuestionando la legitimidad última del régimen. Al reunir a distinguidos estudiosos de este campo legal, tanto de América Latina como de fuera de la región, este volumen analiza esta actual tendencia, extrayendo lecciones de las experiencias pasadas del continente e identificando posibles soluciones a los desafíos importantes que ahora enfrenta
Derecho internacional de las inversiones en América Latina: problemas y perspectivas
No full textWith the bilingual volume International Investment Law in Latin America: Problems and Prospects, Attila Tanzi, Alessandra Asteriti, Rodrigo Polanco Lazo and Paolo Turrini provide a regional perspective on one of the liveliest branches of international law by situating it in one of the most dynamic areas of the world.
Latin America has always had an ambivalent relationship with international investment law and, more recently, it has been the home of harsh and resolute criticisms, questioning the ultimate legitimacy of the regime. By bringing together distinguished scholars of this legal field, the volume analyses ongoing trends and draws lessons from the Continent’s past experiences while identifying possible solutions to the important challenges it faces
G20 International Investment Agreements and Guiding Principles for Global Investment Policymaking
No full textThis paper maps the international investment agreements (IIAs) concluded by Group of Twenty (G20) countries, examining whether there is a common thread between those countries with respect to investment protection and especially the G20 Guiding Principles for Global Investment Policymaking.
For that purpose, the author examines the most important provisions on investment protection in all available IIAs across all G20 countries. These include the scope and definition of investment and investors; the existence of establishment or pre-establishment commitments; standards of treatment and their limitations; and the main standards of protection, like expropriation, transfers, and umbrella clauses.
Finally, the author examines the presence of investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS) provisions and their limitations and maps the presence of the Guiding Principles for Global Investment Policymaking in existing IIAs concluded by G20 countries
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The role of the state in investor-state arbitration /
No full textEdited by Shaheeza Lalani and Rodrigo Polanco Lazo, The Role of the State in Investor-State Arbitration is a collection of contributions from lawyers, arbitrators and political scientists on the development of the concept of the "State" in a field that currently presents an increasing number of controversial disputes: Investor-State Arbitration. The book analyzes the limits of the host State as a regulator, studying issues such as attribution and the role of State-Owned Enterprises and sub-State entities; the changing role of the home State in Investor-State disputes, including its direct participation in Investor-State arbitration and State to State dispute settlement; and the overall role that both home and host States can play in the improvement of Investor-State Dispute Settlement
Investment arbitration and human rights cases in Latin America
No full textThe relationship between international investment and human rights represents a troublesome matter to States that must balance compliance with their international obligations under human rights instruments with the protection of the interests of the investors guaranteed by international investment agreements. This chapter examines cases involving Latin American countries, drawing parallels between the different approaches used by the Inter-American Court of Human Rights and investment treaty arbitral tribunals in disputes that involve both foreign investment and human rights. Closely examining the La Oroya and Renco cases against Peru and the Chevron/Texaco and different human rights cases against Ecuador, we examine whether there is an interaction between both fora, either competitive or collaborative, or if they are in contradiction or isolation. To provide a comparative perspective, the Yukos cases against Russia, brought both before the European Court of Human Rights and several investment arbitral tribunals, are briefly addressed
Intra-Latin America Investor-State Dispute Settlement
No full textThis chapter examines the main features of investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS) in Latin America, in the particular set of cases that have been brought by Latin American investors against host states from the region. Our goal is to determine if there is any regional specificity in these cases or if they rather comply with the trends found on investor-state arbitration in general. For that purpose, we have examined all ISDS cases that correspond to this group, including information on the claims and respondent states, their respective economic sectors, claimants and their home states, applicable international investment agreements (IIAs), breaches claimed and decisions awarded, as well as an analysis of the arbitral rules and arbitral tribunals, including their nationality, as well as the language of proceedings and decisions. We conclude that overall, intra-Latin America ISDS is largely underused, and when it is implemented, it mainly reflects the general trends of investment treaty making and dispute settlement found worldwide. We did not find relevant specificities that could be assumed to exist in arbitration involving countries of the same region, something that actually happens in regional investment treaty making
The Treatment of Regulatory Convergence in Preferential Trade Agreements
No full textThis article explores the concept of ‘regulatory convergence’ in the context of the evolving literature on legal convergence and divergence. Such a concept has emerged as an overarching horizontal discipline in the latest generation of preferential trade agreements and aims to reduce unnecessary regulatory incompatibilities between countries in order to facilitate cross-border trade and investment.
Differing approaches to regulatory convergence found in recently concluded PTAs, or are currently under negotiation, are examined, with a special focus on the ‘regulatory cooperation’ approach embedded in CETA, the path of ‘regulatory improvement’ taken by members of the Pacific Alliance, and the ‘regulatory coherence’ track included in the TPP. We also refer to the TTIP negotiations conducted between the EU and the US.
The article offers a broad understanding of the different ways in which regulatory convergence is implemented across PTAs, and the legal complexities resulting from the ambiguity of the concept. It further describes the scope and effects of the different mechanisms used to achieve regulatory convergence, on both substantive and procedural matters
Facilitation 2.0: Investment and Trade in the Digital Age
No full textIn recent years, investment facilitation has taken an important place in the investment policy debate, with proposals to develop a multilateral framework to facilitate investment being debated in different fora, without achieving a consensus on whether these efforts should focus on implementing binding commitments or should be directed towards developing best practices and soft laws. This paper provides an overview on how investment facilitation is currently considered in international investment agreements (IIAs), including both bilateral investment treaties (BITs) and regional trade agreements (RTAs) with investment chapters, aimed at identifying common approaches that could serve as stepping stones for convergence across IIAs and between them and the multilateral trade system. This does not necessarily imply that similarities are the best or desired approaches, and this piece also identifies shortcomings in existing investment facilitation provisions
The Pacific Alliance in a World of Preferential Trade Agreements: Lessons in Comparative Regionalism
No full textThis volume focuses on one of the most innovative deep integration constructs, The Pacific Alliance, which aims at expanding the frontiers of trade and investment governance in Latin America. It draws on a conference held at Externado University in Bogota, Colombia, in November 2015, bringing together leading scholars, practitioners and officers of public, regional and international organisations interested in a critical analysis of the Alliance, its distinctiveness and likely future directions. The volume features contributions from the multi-disciplinary lens of law, political science and economics.
The Pacific Alliance, comprising Chile, Colombia, Mexico and Peru, aims through a participatory and consensual manner to promote the free circulation of goods, services, capital and persons among its members, and to secure deep economic integration through collaboration across a broader set of policy areas than typically obtains in more traditional preferential trade agreements. This volume is of interest to policy makers and staff of international organizations involved in trade and investment negotiations, international economic governance in general as well as faculty, researchers and graduate students of these topics and of international political economy and comparative regionalism
On The Possible (Re-) Negotiation of BITs by the European Union and its Potential Impact on Latin America
No full textIn the last decade, global markets expanded significantly via trade agreements, regional and bilateral investment treaties. This trend will not stop, even with the global economic turmoil. Thus, the IMF has estimated that, over the next ten years, 90% of the world demand will be generated outside the EU.\ud
On 9 January 2013, Regulation (EU) No 1219/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 December 2012 entered into force. The EU adopted this regulation in order to ensure a smooth transition towards a new EU investment policy and to clarify the legal status of EU Member States’ BITs under EU law. The same EU Regulation establishes transitional arrangements for bilateral investment agreements between Member States and third Countries. In particular, the Regulation clarifies how Member States and the EU will apply existing extra-EU BITs and negotiate new extra-EU BITs. All that in view of the negotiation by the European Commission of future bilateral investment treaties that will replace existing bilateral investment treaties concluded by member States with third Countries. The Regulation is a welcome development of the EU’s investment policy as far as it confirms the validity of existing bilateral investment treaties concluded by Member States with Latin American countries until the EU decides to replace them. \ud
In the second part of this chapter, the analysis will be focused on the status of the BITs in force – or at least signed - between EU Member States and Latin American Countries - on the one hand, and of the EU Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) signed or in force between EU and Latin American Countries, on the other hand. As for the former, an overview of the existing treaties will be provided, along with the presentation of the outcomes of the first notification procedure established by the EU regulation no. 1219/2013. Turning to the FTAs, a particular clause inserted in the mixed agreements concluded in 2012 with Peru and Colombia, and with Central American Countries, will deserve much of the attention. The FTA between EU and Central America contains for example an obligation of States parties to review the investment legal framework, the investment environment, and the flow of investment between the parties no later than three years after the entry into force of the agreement. This investment review clause may be defined as a “rendez-vous” clause which implies an obligation to negotiate future agreements or future amendments to the present ones. The treaties, which belong to a “new generation” of FTAs inaugurated by the European Commission in 2006, will be also highlighted with reference to the recent on-going negotiations of EU free trade and investment agreements with third Countries. Even though it is difficult to speculate on the outcome of the ongoing negotiations on investments, in particular on the level of protection granted to investors and on the settlement of State-investor disputes, we will conclude that (at the minimum) the level of protection for investors achieved at the EU level and the respect for principles such as the precautionary principle shall improve
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