Moral Damages in International Investment Disputes – On the Search for a Legal Basis and Guiding Principles

Abstract

This article sets out to examine the legal nature of and the requirements for granting moral damages in international (investment) law. In doing so, we will consider various general public international law and investment law cases. We will place a particular emphasis on the former, since they provide a valuable platform for the analysis of the origins of moral damages and an exploration of how international tribunals have dealt with moral damages under different circumstances. The more recent investment arbitration cases provide a useful insight into several controversial issues arising out of the arbitral tribunals’ holdings. We will develop a proposal as to how moral damages should be characterized doctrinally and show that nowadays moral damages claims are generally accepted in investment law, despite still existing uncertainties regarding their scope and application.