State Responsibility for Breaches of Investment Contracts

There is a wealth of material that shapes the law of State responsibility for breaches of investment contracts. First impressions of an unsettled or uncertain law have thus far gone unchallenged. But unchallenged first impressions point to the need for a detailed study that investigates and analyses the sources, the content, the characteristics, and the evolution of this law. The argument at the heart of this monograph is that the law of state responsibility for breaches of investment contracts has carved a unique and distinct trajectory from the traditional route for the creation of international law, developing principally from arbitral awards, and mimicking, to a considerable extent, the general international law on the protection of aliens and alien property. This book unveils the remarkable journey of the law of state responsibility for breaches of investment contracts, from its origins, to its formation, to its arrival at the cusp of maturity.

“'The author has written an extremely valuable monograph on a topic that surprisingly has received little attention. International investment contracts were once considered the main source of obligations and of consent to binding dispute settlement, yet academic attention has been focused on treaty breach. This text examines the contractual context and makes the link between international responsibility of states under investment contracts and the international law developed through arbitral awards. It is well written and is a superb source of information and explanation about this aspect of international investment law.' Meg Kinnear, Secretary-General, International Centre for the Settlement of Investment Disputes, Washington DC”

'This monograph is a timely and important contribution to an area of law that is very much in use, but also mired in uncertainty. By analysing the history and development of international law that is specific to contractual protection, the author defines the contours and content of a unique branch of the law of state responsibility. Her thoroughly-researched and provocative thesis promises to engage international investment law scholars, practitioners, and students for years to come.' Hi-Taek Shin, Chairman, Seoul International Dispute Resolution Center
'This work is a superlative historical and systematic analysis of legal materials on investment contracts to the present day. As unilateral reforms, both substantive and procedural, are applied to treaty-based investments, compelling foreign investors increasingly to seek contractual protections with a host State, it is likely to become an essential guide for all participants in this specialist field of investor-state investment disputes.' V.V. Veeder, QC, Essex Court Chambers, and Visiting Professor on Investment Arbitration, Dickson Poon School of Law, King's College London

Jean Ho, FCIArb, is Assistant Professor of Law at the National University of Singapore, where she lectures and supervises on diverse aspects of international investment law. Prior to academia, Dr Ho practiced in investor-state dispute settlement. She is a Member of the Investment Treaty Forum of the British Institute of International and Comparative Law, and an Expert on the UNIDROIT Working Group on Land Agricultural Investment Contracts. Dr Ho is also a co-author of International Investment Law and Arbitration: Commentary, Awards and Other Materials (Cambridge, 2018).

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