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Apparent Dichotomies, Covert Similarities: A Response to Joost Pauwelyn

Year: 2015
Type: article
Abstract: In his thoughtful article, Joost Pauwelyn poses a perplexing question: How can it be that trade and investment are converging in their substantive “legal orders,” but diverging in terms of perceived legitimacy? Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS), he argues, is in a “state of crisis” whereas World Trade Organization (WTO) dispute settlement is generally regarded as “successful.” Pauwelyn’s provocative and counter-intuitive explanation for this paradox focuses on the apparent differences between the pool of decision-makers in each regime: WTO disputes are resolved by nameless, faceless, panel-inexperienced bureaucrats who often lack legal training, whereas “investment arbitrators are typically high-powered, elite jurists” with more expertise and experience than their WTO counterparts.
Source: AJIL Unbound
Language: English
Open Access status: diamond
OpenAlex ID: W2341900942
FWCI: 1.864
Cites: 7
Cited by: 5
Related to: 10