States’ and Investors’ Views on ISDS Reforms – Closer than One Would Expect

Abstract

The ISDS regime has received a number of criticisms in the last 15 years, which has led to the current reform efforts under the uncitral Working Group III. Unfortunately, investors do not have any concrete representation in that process, hence the need to fill this gap. In this context, in 2020 the School of International Arbitration at the Centre for Commercial Law Studies, Queen Mary University of London (QM), conducted a survey on investors’ views on the reform process (QM survey). This article uses the findings of the QM survey to compare States’ and investors’ views on the reform process. Despite being often represented as two conflicting and irreconcilable views, they are closer than one would expect. In light of this, it concludes by suggesting how one can use the QM survey results to focus reform efforts and achieve better results for all stakeholders.