International Investment Protection: Examining Human Rights Implications for the Principle of Fair and Equitable Treatment
Introduction
The global proliferation of international investment agreements (IIAs) and the inclusion of the principle of fair and equitable treatment (FET) in over 2000 investment treaties has resulted in the development of a broad scope of legal protections to foreign investors. This has been accomplished through investment treaties, private contractual provisions between transnational corporations and “host-states”, as well as through the resulting international investor-state jurisprudence.
This paper will explore the significance of human rights within the sphere of international investment arbitration. A breach of fair and equitable treatment is central in almost every investor-state dispute.[1] Therefore, the majority of international investment arbitration decisions can be examined by their effects on human rights, generally, within host-states.