OMC – Investment Treaty News

Facilitación de Inversiones en la OMC: Un intento de introducir un tema controvertido en una organización en crisis

Los debates estructurados sobre facilitación de inversiones (FI) entre 70 miembros de la OMC ya cumplieron 18 meses. Los participantes están cerrando su más reciente fase de trabajo: considerando ejemplos de diferentes temas y elementos que podrían formar las bases de un marco multilateral de FI. Las autoras analizan la historia de los debates de inversión en la OMC y revisan cómo la gobernanza internacional en materia de inversiones ha evolucionado en otros foros durante los últimos años. También examinan qué desafíos pueden surgir al elaborar las disciplinas de FI, especialmente si las mismas han de ser vinculantes, y la importancia de considerar qué foros son los más apropiados para conducir los debates relacionados con la FI.

Debate sobre la facilitación de las inversiones se reanuda en el grupo de miembros de la OMC

El mes pasado en Ginebra fueron retomados los “debates estructurados” sobre un posible marco de facilitación multilateral. La reunión, celebrada a principios de marzo, marcó la primera sesión del año, y dio inicio a una nueva fase en el proceso de debates estructurados.

India se opone a ítem de “facilitación del comercio y la inversión” en la agenda del Consejo General de la OMC

Una reunión del Consejo General de la Organización Mundial del Comercio fue suspendida el 10 de mayo de 2017 después de que India objetara la adopción de la agenda propuesta, que incluye un ítem de “facilitación del comercio y la inversión”.

ICSID tribunal dismisses MFN clause in WTO GATS as a means of importing Senegal’s consent to arbitration from third party BIT

(English) Menzies Middle East and Africa S.A. and Aviation Handling Services International Ltd. v.  Republic of Senegal, ICSID Case No. ARB/15/21- Suzy H. Nikièma

The Merits and Limitations of General Exception Clauses in Contemporary Investment Treaty Practice

The international investment agreement (IIA) regime is experiencing an unprecedented surge in public attention. Prime examples are the debates surrounding the conclusion of the Canada–European Union Comprehensive Trade and Investment Agreement (CETA) and the ongoing negotiations of the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership Agreement between the United States and the European Union (TTIP). In Germany, […]

State Regulatory Autonomy and Tobacco Control in International Trade and Investment Law

Tobacco companies are frequently turning to international trade and investment agreements as a tool to challenge domestic tobacco control measures. Cases to date include: Indonesia’s successful challenge before the World Trade Organization (WTO) of the U.S. exemption of menthol from its ban on flavoured cigarettes;[1] the pending WTO claims by Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Honduras, Indonesia […]

Dealing With the Increasing Complexity of Investment-Related Treaties: A Framework and Some Policy Guidelines

Bilateral investment treaties used to be boilerplate: taken out of a drawer before official visits; signed with pomp and circumstance but not much attention to precise wording. Today, the diversity and ramifications of investment-related treaties are staggering.

Trends in Investor Claims Over Feed-in Tariffs for Renewable Energy

As governments increasingly turn to renewable energy to mitigate climate change, domestic climate-related policies in the form of price support measures such as feed-in tariffs (FiTs) have played an important role in stimulating the much needed investment—public and private, domestic and foreign—in the sector. Feed-in tariffs are characterized by guaranteed electricity purchase prices (set higher […]

Investment Law and Public Services: Clashes of Interests or Peaceful Coexistence?

[T]he Tribunal must balance the legitimate and reasonable expectations of the Claimants with […] [the] right to regulate the provision of a vital public service.[1] This quote from an investment arbitration tribunal highlights the relationship between international investment law and the regulation of public services. This essay illustrates areas of contention between the requirements of […]

Federalism and international investment disputes

One of the more politically controversial aspects of international investment protection treaties is the liability of a State when political sub-divisions are found to have breached that State’s treaty obligations to foreign investors. This issue is particularly significant in federal States, such as Canada, the United States, Australia or Germany, among others, where sub-national governments […]