The ongoing reform of investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS) underlines the pertinence of an old question that has received various and conflicting answers: is investment arbitration a public or a private method of dispute settlement? A key criticism levelled at investment treaty arbitration...

International investment law is undergoing a time of reflection, review and revision. Increasing dissatisfaction with the functioning of the current system that governs the protection of international investment and the wish to ensure that investment is channelled towards sustainable development...

In 2016 and 2017, states continued their engagement with international investment law. A small minority of states displayed scepticism or tried to disengage themselves from their investment law obligations. This chapter addresses select institutional developments in international investment law...

The proper constitution of an Arbitral Tribunal will determine the validity and enforceability of an award. This paper deals with the different problematics that multi arbitrator tribunals, in specific those panels formed under the scheme of party appointed arbitrators can face during the...

“Extreme” weather has become the new normal. What were previously considered to be inexplicable and unpredictable “acts of God” can no longer reasonably be said to be so. They are acts of man. The established doctrine of contractual impracticability rests on the notion that a party may...

Over the years, the substantive content of international investment agreements (IIAs) has shifted to reflect political change and to respond to lessons learnt in investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS). With a focus on eight IIAs, selected with a view to geographical representativeness, this...

This paper reviews the relationship between international investment agreements (IIAs) and foreign direct investment (FDI). It is organised in two parts. The first part explores the generic structure of IIAs and highlights the components that are particularly relevant to FDI. It then gives an...

This article discusses the legal status of links, in connection with the pending cases before the Court of Justice of the European Union in Svensson, C More and BestWater. Hyperlinks, deep links, framed links and embedded links are discussed. It focuses on the Opinion of the European Copyright...

The proliferation of rules aimed at the management of cross-border insolvencies has not been coupled with sufficient attention to the choice of law rules relating to the avoidance of antecedent transactions as legal acts detrimental to all the creditors. This article is the first of its kind in...

This chapter will analyze arguments that the World Trade Organization (WTO) suffers from a 'democratic deficit', which casts doubt on the legitimacy and desirability of its rules and policies. First this chapter outlines teh two strands of this accusation of 'democratic deficit'. That is: 1....