The CCTL Transitional Economic Law and Dispute Settlement Group organised a seminar on ‘Business and Human Rights and International Economic Law’ on 18 March 2020. Mr. Antony Crockett, a public international law and dispute resolution specialist, delivered the seminar which examined recent legal and policy developments in the field of business and human rights and discussed the relevance of those developments for international economic law, in particular in the area of investor-State dispute settlement (ISDS).

Initially, Mr. Crocket clarified the state’s “right to regulate” concerning environmental and social matters and then focused on its implications for investors and repercussions on ISDS. New legislation in the field of public health and environment protection, together with an increase of scrutiny of investors’ conducts in relation to these matters, has led to more investor-state arbitration and concerns on their outcome. The seminar provided an overview of topical ISDS cases and their outcome. In parallel, Mr. Crockett analysed the evolution of business and human rights. He examined soft law expectations and hard law obligations on private enterprises to ensure respect for human rights in their operations and supply chains.

Prof. Fernando Dias Simões chaired the seminar and moderated the Q&A session.