An examination of the origins of international investment law and their continued resonance in the twenty-first century.

International investment law is a complex and dynamic field. Yet, the implications of its history are under explored. Kate Miles examines the historical evolution of international investment law, assessing its origins in the commercial and political expansionism of dominant states during the seventeenth to early twentieth centuries and the continued resonance of those origins within modern foreign investment protection law. In particular, the exploration of the activities of the Dutch East India Company, Grotius' treatises, and pre-World War II international investment disputes provides insight into current controversies surrounding the interplay of public and private interests, the systemic design of investor-state arbitration, the substantive focus of principles, and the treatment of environmental issues within international investment law. In adopting such an approach, this book provides a fresh conceptual framework through which contemporary issues can be examined and creates new understandings of those controversies.

This comprehensive book provides a complete overview of the international legal system of foreign investment protection, synthesising material from treaties, general international law, contracts and case law to demonstrate a coherent system of investment protection. Through this systematic approach, the book considers all aspects of the discipline, providing a thorough and accessible analysis.

This volume celebrates the first fifty years of the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) by presenting the landmark cases that have been decided under its auspices. These cases have addressed every aspect of investment disputes: jurisdictional thresholds; the substantive obligations found in investment treaties, contracts, and legislation; questions of general international law; and a number of novel procedural issues. Each chapter, written by an expert on the chapter’s particular focus, looks at an international investment law topic through the lens of one or more of these leading cases, analyzing what the case held, how it has been applied, and its overall significance to the development of international investment law. These topics include: - applicable law; - res judicata in investor-State arbitration; - notion of investment; - investor nationality; - consent to arbitration; - substantive standards of treatment; - consequences of corruption in investor-State arbitration; - State defenses - counter-claims; - assessment of damages and cost considerations; - ICSID Arbitration Rule 41(5) objections; - mass claims, consolidation and parallel proceedings; - provisional measures; - arbitrator challenges; - transparency and amicus curiae; and - annulment. Because the law of international investment continues to grow in importance in an ever globalizing world, this book is more than a fitting way to mark the past fifty years and to welcome the next fifty years of development. It will prove both educational for practitioners new to the field and informative for seasoned investment lawyers. Moreover, the book itself is a landmark that will be of great value to professionals, scholars and students interested in international investment law.

In The Interpretation of International Investment Law: Equality, Discrimination and Minimum Standards of Treatment in Historical Context, author Todd Weiler demonstrates how historical analysis should be adopted in the interpretation of international investment law obligations. Weiler subjects some of the most commonly held beliefs about the nature and development of international investment law to a critical re-appraisal, based upon meticulously assembled historical record. In the process, the book provides readers with a fresh perspective on some of the oldest obligations in international law.

Historiographical approaches in international investment law scholarship are becoming ever more important. This insightful book combines perspectives from a range of expert international law scholars who explore ways in which using a broad variety of methods in historical research can lead to a better understanding of international investment law.

Transnational investment involves a variety of actors (States, public and private legal entities, and natural persons) whose relationships are governed by rules and legal instruments belonging to different legal systems. This book provides a systematic study of the sources of rights and obligations in the field of transnational investment, and their coordination and interaction. It focuses primarily on the network of over 3,000 Bilateral Investment Treaties, international investment contracts, customary international law, the main multilateral treaties, national legislation, international case law and general principles of law. The book, firmly based on State practice, arbitral awards and national decisions, is indispensable to fully appraise the nature and content of the claims of private investors as well as to identify the law applicable in investment arbitration.