Equity-Based Decision-Making and the Fair and Equitable Treatment Standard: Lessons From the Argentine Investment Disputes – Part I

2012 ◽  
pp. 210-255
Author(s):  
Srilal M. Perera
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
International Law ◽  
International Investment ◽  
International Investment Law ◽  
Treatment Standard ◽  
International Investment Agreements ◽  
Fair And Equitable Treatment ◽  
Investment Law ◽  
Equitable Treatment ◽  
Investment Agreements

In Part I of this two-part article the author examines the foundations for equity-based decision-making under international law and their relevance to resolving contemporary investment disputes based on the Fair and Equitable Treatment standard (FET standard). He contends that equity-based decision-making in the past has been rare, and in such instances adjudicators have been extremely restrained because of the propensity for subjective judgments. However, in the modern day application of equitable considerations in a large number of investments disputes before the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) seeking relief based on the FET standard, the decisions have mostly been inconsistent and conflicting, leading often to inexplicable and excessive remedies. In no other line of cases has this trend been more demonstrated than in the investment disputes following the Argentine economic crisis. They point more to the serious anomalies and omissions and interpretive issues in International Investment Agreements (mostly BITs) which require remedial measures if international investment law itself is to advance.

scholarly journals FAIR AND EQUITABLE TREATMENT STANDARD IN NTERNATIONAL INVESTMENT AGREEMENTS

2018 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 1
Author(s):  
Sefriani .
Keyword(s):  
Due Process ◽  
International Investment ◽  
International Investment Law ◽  
Host State ◽  
Legitimate Expectation ◽  
Treatment Standard ◽  
International Investment Agreements ◽  
Fair And Equitable Treatment ◽  
Equitable Treatment ◽  
Investment Agreements

<pre><span lang="EN-US">In the last five years, the number of investors who suit against host state in the international arbitration forum increased significantly. Almost all lawsuits used fair and equitable treatment (FET) standard which has been violated by the host state. Most of international investment agreements including those that were made by Indonesia contain FET standard clauses. However, there are no definitions related to this standard. This condition potentially raises a very wide interpretation of the standard. The problem formulations in this article are how the history of FET is, where its position in international investment law is and what elements of FET standard are. The results show that the FET standard has existed since Havana Charter followed by various FCN, BIT and other international investment agreements. FET standard can be categorized as customary international, legally binding on all countries regardless their national law. Although there is no universal approval regarding the scope of FET standard, the writings which have been published and the arbitral tribunal decision mentions that those elements are legitimate expectation; due process; denial of justice; rule of law; non-discrimination; transparency; consistency, good faith, and reasonableness.</span></pre><pre><span lang="EN-US"> </span></pre>

Risk, Responsibility, and Fairness in International Investment Law

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Azernoosh Bazrafkan ◽  
Alexia Herwig
Keyword(s):  
International Investment ◽  
International Investment Law ◽  
Political Risks ◽  
Systemic Risks ◽  
International Investment Agreements ◽  
Fair And Equitable Treatment ◽  
Ex Ante ◽  
Investment Law ◽  
Equitable Treatment ◽  
Investment Agreements

International investment agreements (IIAs) accommodate two framings of risk in need of mitigation: political risks and risks of physical externalities. The chapter discloses that there is no consistency in the finer-grained framing of these risks in arbitral awards, and analyses these framings from the perspective of the fair and equitable treatment (FET) standard. It is argued that the requirements of fairness and equity call for a just distribution of systemic risks, which IIAs create. It must be ensured that IIAs yield greater ex ante benefits than risks for each stakeholder. The implication is twofold: governmental regulation necessary to protect human rights can never give rise to a right to damages under FET for frustration of expectations and good faith imperfections in regulations by developing countries must be tolerable insofar as emerging development is the constitutive reason for why foreign investment is likely to yield higher ex ante benefits than risks to investors.

Fair and Equitable Treatment in International Investment Agreements

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Roland Kläger
Keyword(s):  
International Law ◽  
Due Process ◽  
International Investment ◽  
General Character ◽  
Minimum Standard ◽  
Customary International Law ◽  
International Investment Agreements ◽  
Fair And Equitable Treatment ◽  
Equitable Treatment ◽  
Investment Agreements

Fair and equitable treatment is a central norm in international investment law. This norm is contained in the vast majority of international investment agreements as one of the main standards for the protection of foreign investors. Historically, international investment agreements contained short and general clauses of fair and equitable treatment, which were formulated either as free-standing provisions with a reference to general international law, or to the international minimum standard of customary international law. Especially since the first decade of the 21st century, drafting approaches to fair and equitable treatment became increasingly diverse and generated complex and elaborate clauses seeking to address the different elements of the norm that have developed over time. The drafting approaches reflect the long-standing controversies with regard to fair and equitable treatment and the question of whether this concept is to be constructed in accordance with the international minimum standard or as an independent and self-contained standard possibly exceeding customary international law. Both concepts have remained vague and have created difficulties in the interpretation of fair and equitable treatment, which due to its general character became a prominent cause of action in investor-state arbitration proceedings. The evolution of arbitral jurisprudence stimulated the emergence of different elements of fair and equitable treatment, including the protection of the investor’s legitimate expectations, the protection against discrimination and arbitrary treatments, and the principles of due process, denial of justice, and transparency. The increasing number of cases on the basis of fair and equitable treatment also led to concerns and criticism that a far-reaching concept of the norm would threaten the host states’ sovereignty and their right to regulate, as well as the principle of sustainable development. These concerns and the fact that a growing number of investment disputes were brought against developed countries motivated first the North American Free Trade Agreement member states and subsequently other states and the European Union to adapt their international investment agreements in order to try to concretize the concept of fair and equitable treatment and to limit the discretion of arbitrators. The concept of fair and equitable treatment has also received considerable attention by scholars who propose a variety of different approaches to the interpretation of the norm and the balancing of the conflicting private and public interests at stake.

scholarly journals Fair and Equitable Treatment Between the International and National Rule of Law

2019 ◽  
Vol 20 (4) ◽  
pp. 513-552 ◽  
Author(s):  
Velimir Živković
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Rule Of Law ◽  
International Investment ◽  
The Rule Of Law ◽  
International Investment Law ◽  
Investment Protection ◽  
National Rule ◽  
Fair And Equitable Treatment ◽  
Investment Law ◽  
Equitable Treatment

Abstract Promoting the rule of law is a potentially strong legitimating narrative for international investment law. Illustrating the interlinkage, the ubiquitous ‘fair and equitable treatment’ (FET) standard embodies distinctly rule of law requirements. But these requirements remain open-textured and allow understanding their meaning in either more ‘international’ or ‘national’ way. An ‘international’ understanding – detached from the host State’s vision on how the rule of law should look like – should remain dominant. But I argue that decision-making under the FET standard should also involve a systematic engagement with how these requirements would be understood in the host State’s law and how they were complied with from that perspective. Whilst not determinative for establishing a breach, this assessment better respects the expectations of the parties, strengthens the persuasiveness of findings and helps enhance the national rule of law as a key contributor to the ultimate goal of investment protection – economic development.

Africa and the Rethinking of International Investment Law

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Makane Moïse Mbengue ◽  
Stefanie Schacherer
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
International Law ◽  
Dispute Settlement ◽  
International Investment ◽  
Reform Process ◽  
International Investment Law ◽  
Pan African ◽  
International Investment Agreements ◽  
Investment Law ◽  
Investment Agreements

This chapter seeks to present and to contextualize the Pan-African Investment Code (PAIC) by taking a comparative international law approach. Such approach allows us to assess whether the PAIC is an Africa-specific instrument and whether it is unique today in how it incorporates sustainable development concerns. This is particularly interesting for the ongoing global reform process of international investment law. The chapter is divided into five main sections. Section II provides an overview of international investment agreements concluded by African States. Section III presents the origins of the PAIC. Section IV addresses the important question as to what extent the PAIC incorporates traditional investment standards or breaks with them. Section V explores the most innovative aspects of the PAIC. Section VI examines the PAIC and dispute settlement.

MFN Standard as Substantive Treatment

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mira Suleimenova
Keyword(s):  
International Law ◽  
International Investment ◽  
Third Party ◽  
International Investment Law ◽  
International Investment Agreements ◽  
History Of ◽  
Investment Law ◽  
Investment Treaties ◽  
Investment Agreements ◽  
Comprehensive Study

‘Most favoured nation’ (MFN) treatment is an integral part of virtually all modern investment regimes. MFN clauses in international investment agreements signal to investors that a given state protects them from discrimination; however, in practice, enforcing such guarantees may be challenging. This book represents a comprehensive study on how ‘most favoured nation’ treatment operates as a substantive standard of international investment law. Starting with a history of the development of the concept in international law, the author provides an overview of existing state practices in negotiating MFN clauses in bilateral and international investment treaties. Finally, the work analyses the ability of MFN treatment clauses to prevent de facto discrimination and allow for the ‘import’ of third-party substantive protections in international investor state arbitration. Dr Mira Suleimenova, LL.M. is an international investment lawyer based in Vienna, Austria.

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