This essay addresses the recent deceleration in the pace of global FDI and asks whether multinational corporations are actually in retreat. It identifies the forces that are slowing the expansion of FDI, and sketches the role that multinational corporations will play in the future.

This paper provides a critical introduction to the approaches taken in legal research to address issues relating to foreign direct investment (FDI). It starts from a broad understanding of legal approaches to FDI, as encompassing substance and procedure under both national and international law....