Ciel sends letter to USTRs Ambassador Zoellick regarding potential inclusion of the grant of jurisdiction in the Free Trade Area of the Americas

The Center for International Environmental Law argues that granting private investors the jurisdiction to bring arbitral claims over investment authorizations and agreements undermines domestic legal systems and threatens regulatory autonomy over public assets and environmental protections.

• The author opposes including the grant of jurisdiction in the FTAA, arguing that such language removes a significant class of disputes from domestic legal systems and allows foreign investors to challenge domestic regulatory programs.
• The jurisdictional grants in the U.S.-Chile and U.S.-Singapore FTAs are described as broad enough to cover disputes over government procurement, services, permits, and public assets including natural resources such as water, timber, oil, and gas.

APA

Magraw, D. (2003). Ciel sends letter to USTRs Ambassador Zoellick regarding potential inclusion of the grant of jurisdiction in the Free Trade Area of the Americas. Center for International Environmental Law. https://www.ciel.org/news/ciel-sends-letter-to-ustrs-ambassador-zoellick-regarding-potential-inclusion-of-the-grant-of-jurisdiction-in-the-free-trade-area-of-the-americas/

Chicago

Magraw, Daniel. Ciel sends letter to USTRs Ambassador Zoellick regarding potential inclusion of the grant of jurisdiction in the Free Trade Area of the Americas. Center for International Environmental Law, 2003. https://www.ciel.org/news/ciel-sends-letter-to-ustrs-ambassador-zoellick-regarding-potential-inclusion-of-the-grant-of-jurisdiction-in-the-free-trade-area-of-the-americas/.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |last1=Magraw |first1=Daniel |title=Ciel sends letter to USTRs Ambassador Zoellick regarding potential inclusion of the grant of jurisdiction in the Free Trade Area of the Americas |publisher=Center for International Environmental Law |date=1 June 2003 |url=https://www.ciel.org/news/ciel-sends-letter-to-ustrs-ambassador-zoellick-regarding-potential-inclusion-of-the-grant-of-jurisdiction-in-the-free-trade-area-of-the-americas/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{magraw2003ciel, author = {Magraw, Daniel}, title = {{Ciel sends letter to USTRs Ambassador Zoellick regarding potential inclusion of the grant of jurisdiction in the Free Trade Area of the Americas}}, publisher = {Center for International Environmental Law}, year = {2003}, month = jun, url = {https://www.ciel.org/news/ciel-sends-letter-to-ustrs-ambassador-zoellick-regarding-potential-inclusion-of-the-grant-of-jurisdiction-in-the-free-trade-area-of-the-americas/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }