Regionalism and Overlap in Investment Treaty Law – Towards Consolidation or Contradiction?

Journal of International Economic Law 17(2), pp. 271-298 (2014)

48 Pages Posted: 30 Apr 2014 Last revised: 29 Jun 2016

See all articles by Wolfgang Alschner

Wolfgang Alschner

University of Ottawa - Common Law Section

Date Written: April 28, 2014

Abstract

States increasingly conclude intra- and inter-regional treaties to protect foreign investment. In many instances, these regional treaties will overlap with existing bilateral investment treaties. This article finds that every fourth bilateral interstate relationship is affected by such overlap. Only few states use regionalism to de jure or de facto consolidate their investment treaty network. Most countries opt for parallel bilateral and regional treaty layers. Such overlap raises coordination challenges as parallel treaties may duplicate or contradict each other increasing the risk of parallel proceedings, double jeopardy and normative conflict. As these challenges are not specific to investment law, but also exist in trade law, states should draw from both fields in order to develop solutions. By using a comparative perspective, this article identifies new areas for cross-fertilization between both disciplines and offers guidance on how best to manage vertical treaty overlap arising from regionalism.

Keywords: Arbitration, Trade Law, Investment Law, Overlap, Fragmentation

Suggested Citation

Alschner, Wolfgang, Regionalism and Overlap in Investment Treaty Law – Towards Consolidation or Contradiction? (April 28, 2014). Journal of International Economic Law 17(2), pp. 271-298 (2014), Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2430242 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2430242

Wolfgang Alschner (Contact Author)

University of Ottawa - Common Law Section ( email )

57 Louis Pasteur Street
Ottawa, K1N 6N5
Canada

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