Unit name | International Investment Law |
---|---|
Unit code | LAWDM0152 |
Credit points | 30 |
Level of study | M/7 |
Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 4 (weeks 1-24) |
Unit director | Dr. Burton |
Open unit status | Not open |
Pre-requisites |
None |
Co-requisites |
None |
School/department | University of Bristol Law School |
Faculty | Faculty of Social Sciences and Law |
This unit aims to examine the international legal regime that governs activities of investors operating overseas. As a sub-field of public international law, international investment law provides protection to foreign investors and their investments against State excesses. The applicable law finds expression in investment treaties and customary international law, and disputes are commonly settled by way of investor-State arbitration.
This unit will offer a comprehensive and critical introduction to international investment law. It will examine the nature of the investment protection regime by engaging with the theoretical underpinnings and the economic and political rationales informing the creation and development of the regime. It will expose students to the scope and content of substantive standards of investment protection, such as non-discrimination, fair and equitable treatment and expropriation. The procedure of investor-State dispute settlement will also be explored. This part of the course will focus on the framework of international arbitration, and will examine questions of jurisdiction and admissibility, arbitral process, and post-award remedies such as challenges to and enforcement of arbitral awards. Particular attention will be paid to the role of States and the apparent conflicts between investment protection and a State’s sovereign right to regulate in the public interest. Students will be expected to engage with the critical voices challenging the legitimacy of the investment regime, and recent attempts to reshape the investment law regime will be analysed. Alongside examining the scope of the existing legal regime, this unit will also deal with the interaction between investment law and issues of environmental and human rights protection.
The list of examinable topics will include: history and political economy of investment law, sources of investment law, definition of investors and investments, substantive obligations of non-discrimination (MFN and national treatment), expropriation, fair and equitable treatment, defences and exceptions, dispute settlement institutions and process, jurisdiction and admissibility, challenges and enforcement of awards, and backlash and legitimacy challenges.
The main learning outcome of this unit is to equip students with a clear understanding of the international regime governing the protection and regulation of foreign investment. Students will also learn about the shifts that the investment regime is currently undergoing. Moreover, students will be to engage with investment law from a critical perspective, particularly the role it plays in regulating the behaviour of developing States. By the end of the unit, students should be able to:
This unit will be taught by way of 8 lectures, 10 two-hour seminars and 2 assessment preparation and feedback sessions.
Summative: A 2000 word essay (33%), which assessed the candidate's ability to research a topic within the scope of this unit, and one 3 hour written examination (67%). Both assessments will assess all of the Intended Learning Outcomes for this unit in the context of topics selected by the examiners (ILOs 1-5)
Formative: students should do one formative assessment (this will usually be 1 x 1500 word essay). This will be accompanied by exercises and activities built into the teaching and learning programme. These will include student research presentations and advocacy exercises (ILOs 1-5)
As a case-book, students may refer to