The Nationality of Corporate Investors under International Investment Law

Who is protected under international investment agreements? Issues relating to nationality of corporate investors have been at the forefront of the recent debates about the present and future of international investment law. Among other things, the ability of firms to deploy their corporate form to cherry pick protections have caused much concern not only among scholars but also policymakers in both developed and developing states. Yet although such debates have generated a considerable body of literature, this book is the first of its kind to explore corporate nationality under international investment law in a critical and comprehensive manner. The book makes a novel contribution to international legal scholarship by tackling the subject with analytical rigour and eloquence in equal measure. In unveiling the systemic issues behind the backlash against international investment law, Yilmaz-Vastardis combines a meticulous analysis of the complex legal issues with a refreshing critical exposition of the context in which the law operates. The book will become a classic and a main point of reference for both scholars of international investment law and experts involved in drafting and interpreting investment treaty instruments. * Dr Mavluda Sattorova, Reader, University of Liverpool Law School * The legitimacy crisis that attends treaty-based investment arbitration arises from expansive interpretation of treaty provisions and manipulation of concepts used in the treaties. Nothing illustrates these trends better than the use made by arbitrators of the concept of corporate nationality that identifies the link between the investor and the home state as the basis of the claim for protection. The necessary link has been manipulated in investment arbitration to such an extent as to bring about results unintended by states. The resulting tension hangs over investment arbitration, threatening to undermine its foundations. Anil Yilmaz has made a sophisticated study of the unfolding of the trends, the justifications and criticisms of the developments in this book. Based on a comprehensive analysis of corporate nationality in other areas of the law, this study will influence the reform of a difficult area in investment treaties, as well as arbitration, and remain the standard work on the subject for many years to come. * M Sornarajah, Emeritus Professor of Law, National University of Singapore *