JOINT POST-HEARING SUBMISSION BY AMICI TO THE TRIBUNAL

This joint post-hearing submission by several amici curiae (including the International Institute for Sustainable Development) addresses the legal status of environmental measures under the police powers exclusion from expropriation in the NAFTA Chapter 11 arbitration between Methanex Corporation and the United States.

• The amici argue that under modern international law, bona fide environmental protection measures fall within the scope of the police powers rule and are therefore non-expropriatory, similar to public health measures.
• The submission notes that while the United States and Canada have stated that legitimate environmental and public health measures are not expropriatory under NAFTA, Methanex has focused its argument on the claim that the California MTBE measure was discriminatory.
• The amici assert that the evolution of international law, as recognized by the International Court of Justice and the WTO Appellate Body, requires that older formulations of the police powers rule (which focused on "public health, safety and morals") be adjusted to include environmental protection.
• The amici clarify that applying the police powers rule to environmental measures does not eliminate the requirement for compensation in cases involving the actual transfer of property title, such as taking land for a national park.

APA

International Institute for Sustainable Development (2004). JOINT POST-HEARING SUBMISSION BY AMICI TO THE TRIBUNAL. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/trade_methanex_post_hearing_submissions.pdf

Chicago

International Institute for Sustainable Development. JOINT POST-HEARING SUBMISSION BY AMICI TO THE TRIBUNAL. 2004. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/trade_methanex_post_hearing_submissions.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=International Institute for Sustainable Development |title=JOINT POST-HEARING SUBMISSION BY AMICI TO THE TRIBUNAL |date=29 June 2004 |url=https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/trade_methanex_post_hearing_submissions.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{internationalinstituteforsustainabledevelopment2004joint, author = {{International Institute for Sustainable Development}}, title = {{JOINT POST-HEARING SUBMISSION BY AMICI TO THE TRIBUNAL}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2004}, month = jun, url = {https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/trade_methanex_post_hearing_submissions.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }