Abstract

This article locates the Philip Morris Asia v Australia arbitration proceeding, initiated in 2011, in the context of broader policy and political debates. Part 1 briefly outlines Australia's investment treaty framework, suggesting that while the Hong Kong based investor may have a viable claim for expropriation or other violations of a 1993 treaty, Australia also has a viable defence for introducing tobacco plain packaging legislation. This 'hard case' therefore may join other 'great cases' in generating 'bad law' - namely the Australian Government's announcement in April 2011 that it ...