External Transparency of Investment Awards

Abstract

This is the first part of a research on Transparency of Investment Awards within the context of a broader research project on Transparency in International Trade and Investment Dispute Settlement, organized by Professor Junji Nakagawa, Institute of Social Science, University of Tokyo, and funded by the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science. The present paper addresses the issue of whether decisions rendered in investor-State arbitration are and/or should be made publicly available (i.e., 'external' transparency of investment decisions). The paper focuses on (1) an examination of the arbitration rules provided for by the major arbitration institutions as well as those found in international investment treaties with regard to the transparency of arbitral decisions; (2) an empirical analysis of the investment decisions rendered in the last 5 years which are publicly and not publicly available; (3) an examination of the arguments in favour of confidentiality and in favour of transparency of investment decisions. The second part of the research will address the issue of 'internal' transparency of investment awards.