Introduction

One of the purposes of investor-State arbitration is to avoid local courts. Litigation in the host State's domestic courts is usually seen as lacking the objectivity that the investor desires. In addition, domestic courts typically have to apply their local law, even if it falls short of the standards provided by international law. The traditional international remedy was diplomatic protection, but diplomatic protection always involved the exhaustion of local remedies. Going first to the local courts meant delay and additional expense to the investor but it also ...