Postgraduate Module Descriptor

LAWM081: International Investment Law and Arbitration

This module descriptor refers to the 2017/8 academic year.

Module Aims

This module aims to provide you with :

  • Essential knowledge of the connection of public international law and international investment disputes and of the relevant public international law principles.  

  • Essential knowledge of the key international treaties that protect investments (i.e. bilateral, regional, multilateral investment treaties, Free Trade Agreements – FTAs);

  • Essential knowledge of the investment treaties substantive and procedural  protections;

  • Skills and knowledge needed to advise clients on the substantive rights afforded to them both under the investor host state contract and the bilateral and multilateral investment treaties (including protections against state discrimination and expropriation);

  • An understanding of  the unique nature of investor-state arbitration as a form of dispute resolution in international law;

  • Essential knowledge of the specialised forms of institutional arbitration in the field, and their similarities and differences to commercial arbitration, in particular examination of international arbitration under the ICSID.

  • A critical understanding, enriched by discussion of contemporary research, of current controversies surrounding the impact of investment treaty disciplines on regulatory autonomy, development strategies and the human rights of citizens in host states.

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)

This module's assessment will evaluate your achievement of the ILOs listed here - you will see reference to these ILO numbers in the details of the assessment for this module.
On successfully completing the programme you will be able to:
Module-Specific Skills1. Demonstrate deep and systematic knowledge and understanding of international investment law, and an extensive range of major concepts, values and principles relevant to the field; in doing so also highlight the changing legal regime in international investment arbitrations
2. Demonstrate deep and systematic knowledge, in particular, of the jurisdictional requirements for bringing a claim under a typical investment treaty, the means of dispute resolution available to foreign investors in investment disputes, the substantive protections available to foreign investors protected by an investment treaty, the likely remedies awarded for a successful claim, and the different methods of determining the amount of compensation due
3. Undertake complex critical evaluation of the main legal rules, institutions and procedures relevant to international investment law, using specialist literature and current research;
4. Identify, explain and evaluate key criticisms of investment arbitration and proposals for reform, applying relevant rules and theories systematically;
Discipline-Specific Skills5. Integrate and assess complex information from primary and secondary legal sources and advanced legal scholarship comprehensively, using appropriate interpretative techniques;
6. Select, integrate, evaluate and present relevant law and complex legal/theoretical arguments, clearly, autonomously and competently, orally and in writing;
Personal and Key Skills7. Communicate and engage in debate effectively, confidently and autonomously, orally and in writing, in a manner appropriate to an international legal audience; and
8. Demonstrate confident, independent and comprehensive learning ability required for continuing professional development, managing own requirements and contributing to the learning of others.

Module Content

Syllabus Plan

Although the module’s precise content may vary, it is anticipated that the following topics will be covered:

  • Introduction to international investment law and policy and to international investment out-of-court disputes

  • The historical treatment of aliens in international law

  • Regulatory / legal framework &Institutional background in relation to international arbitration for investment disputes

  • Principles of investment dispute resolution.

  • ICSID Disputes (- Jurisdiction: ‘investment’ and ‘investors’, applicable law -  Substantive protections: non-discrimination; expropriation; fair and equitable treatment; denial of justice and the ‘effective means’ clause – Procedure - Reservations and exceptions, - Remedies: compensation, valuation techniques and non-monetary remedies, - Awards)

  • Bilateral Investment Treaties (BITs)

  • Case studies

  • Current developments and proposals for systemic reform

Learning and Teaching

This table provides an overview of how your hours of study for this module are allocated:

Scheduled Learning and Teaching ActivitiesGuided independent studyPlacement / study abroad
302700

...and this table provides a more detailed breakdown of the hours allocated to various study activities:

CategoryHours of study timeDescription
Scheduled Learning and Teaching Activities3010 x 3 hour seminars involving lectures with discussion activities, individual and group presentations
Guided independent study113Individual research, reading and seminar preparation
Guided independent study63Assessment preparation (presentation)
Guided independent study94Assessment preparation (essay and case study)

Online Resources

This module has online resources available via ELE (the Exeter Learning Environment).

ICSID website https://icsid.worldbank.org/apps/ICSIDWEB/Pages/default.aspx

UNCTAD Inter-treaty database http://unctad.org/en/Pages/DIAE/FDI%20Statistics/Interactive-database.aspx

Investment Treaty Arbitration website: www.italaw.com (database of publicly-available investment treaty arbitral awards)

Investment Arbitration Reporter http://www.iareporter.com/

Other Learning Resources

CAMPBELL  MCLAHJAN, LAWRENCE SHORE, MATHEW WEINIGER, International Investment Arbitration, Substantive Principles (OUP 2008)

CHRISTOPHER DUGAN, DON WALLACE, JR., NOAH RUBINS, & BORZU SABAHI, Investor-State Arbitration (OUP 2008)

ZACHARY DOUGLAS, The International Law of Investment Claims (Cambridge UP 2009)

NORAH GALLAGHER AND WENHUA SHAN, Chinese Bilateral Investment Treaties. Policies and Practice (Oxford 2009)

JULIAN D M LEW, LOUKAS A MISTELIS, STEFAN M KRÖLL, Comparative International Commercial Arbitration (Kluwer, 2003)

J MERRILLS, International Dispute Settlement (Cambridge UP, 4th ed, 2005) – another good text for a part of the course

PETER MUCHLINSKI FEDERICO ORTINO & CHRISTOPH SCHREUER (EDS), Oxford Handbook of International Investment Law (Oxford 2008) – a comprehensive coverage

ANDREW NEWCOMBE AND LLUIS PARADELL, Law and Practice of Investment Treaties. Standards of Treatment (Kluwer 2009)

D PALMETER & P C MAVROIDIS, Dispute Settlement in the World Trade Organization – Practice and Procedure (2nd edition 2003)

AUGUST REINISCH (Ed), Standards of Investment Protection (Oxford 2008)

NOAH RUBINS AND STEPHEN KINSELLA, International Investment, Political Risk and Dispute Resolution: A Practitioner’s Guide (OUP 2005)

MONIQUE SASSON, Substantive Law in Investment Treaty Arbitration. The Unsettled Relationship between International Law and Municipal Law, Kluwer Law International, 2010

CHRISTOPH SCHREUER WITH LORETTA MALINTOPPI, AUGUST REINISCH, ANTHONY SINCLAIR, The ICSID Convention: A Commentary (Cambridge UP and ICSID, 2nd edition 2009)

M SORNARAJAH, The International Law on Foreign Investment, (Cambridge UP, 2nd ed, 2004)

PETER VAN DEN BOSSCHE, The Law and Policy of the World Trade Organization: Text, Cases and Materials (Cambridge 2008)

KATIA YANNACA-SMALL (Ed), Arbitration Under International Investment Agreements - A Guide to the Key Issues (OUP 2010)