Highly controversial investor rules in the EU-Canada free trade agreement (CETA) led the EU Parliament to ask its legal service whether they were compatible with EU law, and the analysis has just been published.
International corporations that want to intimidate countries have access to a private legal system designed just for them. And to unlock its power, sometimes all it takes is a threat.
Reform of the international investment agreement regime has swept many countries, including Australia, South Africa, Indonesia, India and the EU, writes the Secretary-General of CUTS. What are the reasons for the growing scepticism? What lies ahead?
For the first time ever, progress is being made at the United Nations for a binging legal instrument that would hold corporations accountable for human rights violations.
As part of ongoing initiatives towards restructuring its bilateral investment treaty regime, Indii aims to minimize the possibility of arbitral tribunals interpreting the treaty provisions vastly different from what the contracting parties originally had in mind.
India is seeking to terminate BITs signed with 57 countries and sign joint interpretative statements with the other 25 treaty states – all an outcome of the country’s new model BIT.