IILAH Seminar: The Clash of Analogies and Approaches in the Investment Treaty System

The Institute for International Law and the Humanities (IILAH) will present a seminar by Ms Anthea Roberts (Law, London School of Economics). Gavan Griffith QC will act as a commentator. Associate Professor Jürgen Kurtz (Director, International Investment Law, IILAH) will chair the seminar.

How we understand the investment treaty system is currently up for grabs. Some argue that it should be seen as a sub-field of public international law, while others view it as simply another form of international (commercial) arbitration. Some have argued that we should recharacterise the field as one of international public law because investment tribunals are acting akin to administrative or constitutional courts, while others draw parallels with treaty regimes that give rights to non-state actors, such as the European Convention on Human Rights. In this talk, Ms Roberts will argue that this clash of approaches goes to the heart of disagreements both within and about the investment treaty field. Using the idea of “Choice of Analogies,” she will explore what each of these analogies reveals and obscures about the investment treaty system, along with which professional groups and participants tend to champion which analogies and why.

DATE:   Monday, 4 July 2011

VENUE: Room 920, Level 9 (Melbourne Law School, 185 Pelham Street Carlton)

TIME:   1:00 - 2:00pm (12.45pm Light lunch provided.)

RSVP:   vesnas@unimelb.edu.au or 03 8344 6589