Essay 15: The Place of Regionalism in Investor-State Dispute Settlement

Investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS) is globally under scrutiny. The regime is a United States-Europe axis’ creation to provide legal certainty to their investors abroad, and nowadays is supported by a thick net of more than 3300 international investment agreements – mainly bilateral treaties. Footnote 1 It allows foreign investors to bypass local courts and sue states in international ad hoc tribunals administered by global institutions such as the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID), even regarding public interest or human rights measures. Philip Morris v Uruguay (tobacco control measures, ICSID Case No. ARB/10/7), Eco Oro v Colombia (conservation of paramo ecosystems/climate action policies, ICSID Case No. ARB/16/41), Legacy Vulcan v Mexico (environmental protection, ICSID Case No. ARB/19/1), Vattenfall v Germany (II) (national security and nuclear energy, ICSID Case No. ARB/12/12) or RWE v The Netherlands (energy transition, ICSID Case No. ARB/12/4) disputes are illustrative examples.