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investor-state disputes | ISDS

Investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS) refers to a way of handling conflicts under international investment agreements whereby companies from one party are allowed to sue the government of another party. This means they can file a complaint and seek compensation for damages. Many BITs and investment chapters of FTAs allow for this if the investor’s expectation of a profit has been negatively affected by some action that the host government took, such as changing a policy. The dispute is normally handled not in a public court but through a private abritration panel. The usual venues where these proceedings take place are the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (World Bank), the International Chamber of Commerce, the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law or the International Court of Justice.

ISDS is a hot topic right now because it is being challenged very strongly by concerned citizens in the context of the EU-US TTIP negotiations, the TransPacific Partnership talks and the CETA deal between Canada and the EU.

First Quantum warns of arbitration as Panama weighs copper contract
27-Nov-2023 Reuters
Canada’s First Quantum intends to start arbitration against Panama, the Central American nation’s trade ministry and the company said, as Panama’s top court considers annulling a copper contract that opponents call unfair.
Honduras is fighting back against corporate colonialism
24-Nov-2023 Tribune
American billionaires are suing the Honduran government for blocking the creation of a libertarian city-state in the country. If they win, it will be a devastating victory for corporate colonialism over democracy.
Abuja agrees to settlement with ENI over OPL 245
24-Nov-2023 Africa Intelligence
The battle over block OPL 245 between Nigeria and Italian major ENI was suspended on 16 November.
The global minimum tax spurs need for faster investment agreement reforms
24-Nov-2023 UNCTAD
A UNCTAD report highlights the interplay between efforts to tackle tax avoidance and protect investment, calling for accelerated reforms to align investment agreements with new global tax rules.
Energy Charter Treaty plans for expansion revealed in recently posted notes
24-Nov-2023 Global Justice Now
Notes from the Energy Charter Treaty Conference reveal plans for the controversial Energy Charter Treaty to expand to more oil-producing countries.
Cadence Minerals Plc – Sonora lithium investment update – Request for treaty negotiations with Mexico
21-Nov-2023 Cadence Minerals
Cadence Minerals and its subsidiary REM Mexico Limited have issued a request for consultations and negotiations to the Government of Mexico under the United Kingdom-Mexico Bilateral Investment Treaty.
EU, Germany and Denmark sued by oil firm over windfall tax
20-Nov-2023 The Guardian
Officials fear secret courts will block climate action and divert billions into coffers of fossil fuel investors.
Abyssinian launches legal dispute against State JV partner in Ethiopia
20-Nov-2023 Mining Weekly
Mining corporations have taken steps to issue a notice and dispute and request for negotiations to the Ethiopian government over concerns at measures taken against Abyssinian’s investments in the Kenticha lithium and tantalum project in the country.
Free trade and debt: the two sides of neocolonialism
16-Nov-2023 bilaterals.org
Highlights from the workshop organised in Marrakesh by Attac Maroc, bilaterals.org, CADTM Africa, GRAIN and the Tunisian Observatory of Economy.
Energy giant RWE withdraws billion-euro claim against the Netherlands
15-Nov-2023 SOMO
German energy company RWE has announced its intention to withdraw its international arbitration proceedings against the Dutch state at the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes.
Clive Palmer uses another trade agreement to sue Australia, again, for $A69 billion over refusal of Waratah coal mine permit
14-Nov-2023 AFTINET
Billionaire Clive Palmer is using the Investor-State Dispute Settlement mechanism against Australia because the permits for a coal mining project were refused for environmental reasons, including their contribution to increased carbon emissions.
ISDS mechanisms: The power of highly anti-democratic corporate interest
13-Nov-2023 ImpACT International
Removing ISDS mechanisms within the CPTPP is a good start, but Britain must protect itself and other nations from its own corporate interests by removing all ISDS mechanisms.
Arbitration court favors Bolivia in dispute with mining company
7-Nov-2023 teleSUR
The Permanent Court of Arbitration ruled in favor of Bolivia, denying any compensation to the American mining company Orlandini for the revocation of concessions.
Zenith adds another arbitration case over Tunisia problems
6-Nov-2023 Energy Voice
Zenith Energy has launched international arbitration in Paris against state-owned Entreprise Tunisienne d’Activités Pétrolières (ETAP).
It’s time to exit ISDS: 200+ labor, environment, and other civil society groups urge Biden to eliminate extreme corporate powers from existing trade pacts
3-Nov-2023 Public Citizen
The groups argue that removing ISDS — which has prioritized corporate rights over those of governments, people, and the planet — is needed to protect policies necessary for a clean energy transition.
An India-UK investment treaty might soon be clinched
3-Nov-2023 Mint
India and UK seem to have moved towards common ground on dispute settlement, which was the most controversial part of the bilateral investment treaty.
DTEK energy company claims $ 267 million victory in The Hague against Russia over Crimea assets
3-Nov-2023 Euromaidan Press
DTEK Group prevails in The Hague case, securing a $267 million award from Russia for the confiscation of assets in occupied Crimea.
Even rich nations now worried about ISDS
2-Nov-2023 Inter Press Service
Governments the world over are worried about investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS) rules. These allow foreign investors to sue them for billions over new laws or policies reducing their profits.
In the 1960s, the World Bank created a mechanism that allows corporations to sue states
31-Oct-2023 Jacobin
The investor-state dispute settlement is a system that empowers foreign investors to sue a sovereign government. It was instituted in the 1960s against the votes of most Latin American countries — and continues to wreak havoc today.
Why this Canadian-owned copper mine is facing fierce opposition in Panama​​
30-Oct-2023 Corporate Knights
First Quantum notified the government of its intent to initiate arbitration under the Canada-Panama Free Trade Agreement in 2022, during the contract’s negotiation process.