Empirical research on the impact of investment treaties has focused almost exclusively on their effect on foreign investment, with mixed results. Yet, another important promise of the treaties has been ignored altogether. Architects of the investment treaty regime, as well as many current...

Unanticipated consequences -- Bounded rationality and the spread of investment treaties -- A difficult beginning -- Promoting investment treaties -- A less then rational competition -- Narcissistic learning -- Letting down the guard : a case study -- Expanding the bounds of rationality in the...

Bilateral investment treaties (BITs) are typically presented as vital risk-mitigating instruments providing foreign investors with “credible commitments” that their assets will not be expropriated, discriminated against, or otherwise maltreated post-establishment. Accordingly, developing...

The paper analyzes systematic patterns of investment treaty rule-making using a large sample of bilateral investment treaties (BITs). Focusing on national treatment and transfer provisions, it finds that BITs signed between two developing countries are typically less wide-ranging than...

This paper compares the current foreign direct investment (FDI) recession with FDI responses to past economic crises. The authors find that although developed country outflows have taken an equally big hit as major developed countries have after past crises, outflows seem to be bouncing back...

The growing stock of foreign investments by sovereign wealth funds and state-owned enterprises poses regulatory challenges to the international investment regime. With arbitrators seemingly keen on expanding the jurisdictional scope of investment treaty arbitration to cover a wide range of...