Investor-State Disputes in Chile: A Crucial Topic in Crucial Times
In this, the third of seven podcasts on international arbitration in Latin America from Baker McKenzie and Trench Rossi Watanabe, Rodrigo DÃaz de Valds, a partner and head of the dispute resolution office in the Baker McKenzie Santiago office, and Felipe Soza, an associate in the same office, highlight the growing importance of disputes between investors and nation states.
Felipe Soza
The rise of investment treaties and agreements in Chile
Throughout the last decade Chile has become part of many free trade agreements and bilateral investment treaties.
Due to the pressure of ever-increasing regulations and abrupt legal changes, many investors have begun to trigger anti-dispute resolution mechanisms contained in these agreements and treaties.
The government has even set up an agency to deal with these cases.
The fundamentals of investment treaties
Most investment treaties have a similar structure: definitions, rights, exclusions and dispute resolution mechanisms.
The majority of these treaties have direct dispute resolution procedures between investors and states, through which the investor may force the state to negotiate or even take the state before an international arbitration court.
Resolution of disputes related to investment in Chile
If the parties are unable to reach an agreement, the investor may choose between instituting proceedings before domestic courts and suing the state before the international arbitration court mentioned in the treaty.
Not only is there growing investor interest in understanding dispute resolution mechanisms under a treaty, but also in modifying their corporate structures to benefit from an international treaty so-called investment treaty planning.
Baker McKenzie
