ABSTRACT
Inspired by recent discussions led mostly by the European Union concerning reform of the current, arbitration-based investor-State dispute settlement (ISDS) system, Dean Céline Lévesque explored in her June 2017 presentation in Xiamen what conditions would entice important capital exporters of the Asian region to embrace a Multilateral Investment Court.
Guided by the values of independence and impartiality, efficiency and predictability and rule of law, she asks in this chapter what could persuade countries such as China, Japan, South Korea or Singapore to support the creation of a new, stand-alone court. In order to assess feasibility, Dean Lévesque focuses on the design of such a court, looking first into issues of representation and size and second asking questions such as ‘who should judge’ and ‘how should the court function’. In doing so, she draws on examples and practices of international courts and bodies.
The chapter concludes (not surprisingly) that a key challenge for a Multilateral Investment Court would be to limit the scope for the politicization of the nomination and selection process of judges.
