The Heritage of Arung Palakka

Book excerpt: With the entrance of the European Union into the field of International Investment Law and Arbitration, a new specialist field of law, namely ‘European Investment Law and Arbitration’ is in the making. This new field of law draws on EU Law, Public International Law, International Investment Law, International Arbitration Law and Practice and International Economic Law, while others fields of law such as Energy Law are also relevant. The European Investment Law and Arbitration Review is the first law periodical specifically dedicated to the field of ‘European Investment Law and Arbitration’. The timing could not be better. The first EU integrated investment treaties with Canada (CETA), US (TTIP) and Singapore (EU-SING) are either negotiated or about to be signed and ratified by the EU and its Member States. These are “integrated” investment treaties in that they combine free trade agreement provisions with international investment agreement norms. Moreover, the Court of Justice of the EU (CJEU) is about to deliver its first judgments and Opinions directly relating to intra-EU BITs and the EU-SING FTA. More generally, the public debate and discussions within academic and practitioner circles about the pros and cons of investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS) and investment treaties in general is intensifying almost on a daily basis. The Review will cover all these issues, but also goes beyond that by offering space for more innovative approaches and themes.