The new EU regulation on financial responsibility for EU investor-state disputes will not only hinder investors in bringing investor state claims but may deter investors from making much needed investment
A new European Regulation entered into force on 17 September last year. (EU No 912/2014) The Regulation – and I’m quoting from a variety of sources that all seem to say the same thing – is supposed to “allocate financial responsibility going forward, for claims brought by non-EU investors for harm done to their investment within the European Union. Depending on who was involved in the treatment in question – a Member State or a body, institution or agency of the EU itself, responsibility is allocated accordingly”. The key words are “allocated accordingly”. For those words are the tip of an iceberg that will not only make it harder for investors to bring claims against the actions of a host state but in so doing, deter investors from investing in Europe.
