Approaches of International Courts and Tribunals to the Award of Compensation in International Private Property Cases and Implications for the Reform of Investor-State Arbitration

This report analyzes compensation calculations in international courts and tribunals to inform reforms of investor-state arbitration, aiming to mitigate the negative socio-economic impacts caused by increasingly high compensation awards to foreign investors.

• The report identifies that investor-state arbitral tribunals have been awarding increasingly high compensation amounts to foreign investors, which may worsen the negative economic and social effects of investment treaties on host states.
• To reform investor-state dispute settlement, the paper suggests several options: creating new treaty language that deviates from customary international law standards of reparation or provides better guidance; mandating that tribunals consider domestic reparation decisions; promoting negotiated or mediated settlements; and increasing the use of tribunal-appointed experts over party-appointed experts for compensation calculations.

APA

Shirlow, E. (2022). Approaches of International Courts and Tribunals to the Award of Compensation in International Private Property Cases and Implications for the Reform of Investor-State Arbitration. International Institute for Sustainable Development. https://www.iisd.org/publications/report/international-courts-private-property-cases-reform-investor-state-arbitration

Chicago

Shirlow, Esmé. Approaches of International Courts and Tribunals to the Award of Compensation in International Private Property Cases and Implications for the Reform of Investor-State Arbitration. International Institute for Sustainable Development, 2022. https://www.iisd.org/publications/report/international-courts-private-property-cases-reform-investor-state-arbitration.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Shirlow |first1=Esmé |title=Approaches of International Courts and Tribunals to the Award of Compensation in International Private Property Cases and Implications for the Reform of Investor-State Arbitration |publisher=International Institute for Sustainable Development |date=1 June 2022 |url=https://www.iisd.org/publications/report/international-courts-private-property-cases-reform-investor-state-arbitration |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{shirlow2022approaches, author = {Shirlow, Esmé}, title = {{Approaches of International Courts and Tribunals to the Award of Compensation in International Private Property Cases and Implications for the Reform of Investor-State Arbitration}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2022}, month = jun, url = {https://www.iisd.org/publications/report/international-courts-private-property-cases-reform-investor-state-arbitration}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }