Investor-State Dispute Settlement
June 27, 2022: After two years of negotiations, members of the Energy Charter Treaty (ECT) have arrived at an ‘Agreement in Principle’ which fails to end special protections for fossil fuel investments through Investor-State Dispute Settlement mechanisms (ISDS).
May 10, 2022: A new report published in the prestigious journal Science has raised the alarm on how corporate rights to sue governments through trade deals could threaten climate action, and cost taxpayers billions.
April 6, 2022: For the first time, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has warned that climate action is being jeopardised by trade agreements which give global corporations the right to sue governments through clauses known as ‘Investor State Dispute Settlement’ mechanisms, or ISDS.
28 February: AFTINET has raised the alarm over the possibility that British corporations will gain the right to sue the Australian Government if the UK is granted membership in the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP).
February 15, 2022: Environmental defenders in Thailand have slammed a decision by the Thai Government to reinstate formerly revoked mining licenses following a lengthy legal battle in an international arbitration tribunal, paving the way for Australian mining company Kingsgate Consolidated to begin operations in the Chatree gold mine.
November 25: The company behind the Keystone XL oil pipeline has formally begun legal proceedings to sue the US government for USD$15 billion through an Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) provision in the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).
November 8, 2021: In a significant step forward in the campaign against Investor-State Dispute Settlements (ISDS), Australia has announced its withdrawal from its signatory status to the Energy Charter Treaty (ECT), on September 28, 2021. The ECT is an investment agreement that allows fossil-fuel companies to sue governments in international tribunals for climate action policies.
October 13, 2021: An investor–state dispute settlement (ISDS) tribunal released its final decision on a 2018 case launched against the Republic of Colombia by Canadian mining giant Eco Oro Minerals under the Canada-Colombia Free Trade Agreement (FTA).
September 21, 2021: In 2016, following mounting criticism of abuse by global corporations of Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) began a review. But after five years, the UNCITRAL Working Group III (WGIII) appears to be a long way from delivering meaningful reforms to the investment arbitration regime.
August 11, 2021: Pakistan has decided to terminate 23 bilateral investment treaties (BITs) with different countries in order to avoid being sued by foreign investors. Already Pakistan is facing 10 Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) claims, exposing it to billions of dollars in compensation.