Abstract

The number of international disputes involving issues related to the natural environment has grown in recent years. In parallel, concerns have mounted about the legitimacy, attributes and impact of the global system of international investment protection and investment arbitration, including its impact on the rule of law. This article considers how environmental considerations, when relevant in fact and/or law, could be better accounted for in investment arbitration processes and decision-making so as to improve the realisation of the rule of law in adjudication. The article brings these two developments together by exploring how familiar tools, especially rules governing treaty interpretation and applicable law, can be deployed to achieve this aim.

This paper will be part of the fourth TDM Special Issue on "International Investment Arbitration - Environmental Protection and Climate Change Issues". More information here www.transnational-dispute-management.com/news.asp?key=1893