LCIL Friday lecture: 'India and International Investment Law: Refusal, Acceptance, Backlash' - Dr Prabhash Ranjan, South Asian University

LCIL International Law Seminar Series

Lecture summary: The talk will focus on India's journey towards international investment law. India's approach towards international investment law has changed considerably over the years. For the first four decades after independence, India did not sign any bilateral investment treaty (BIT) - the most important source of international investment law - because it followed an import substitution industrialization model. Things changed in the early 1990s, when India embraced economic globalisation and adopted a welcoming attitude towards foreign investment. Consequently, India started signing BITs. From 2011 onward, India's BITs programme has entered a phase of 'backlash' as a consequence of being sued by many foreign investors before ISDS tribunals, India's outlook towards BITs has undergone a change. India unilaterally terminated its BITs and adopted a deeply protectionist Model BIT. Dr Prabhash Ranjan is a Senior Assistant Professor of Law at the South Asian University, New Delhi, India. He holds a PhD in law from King's College London and is the author of the book, 'India and Bilateral Investment Treaties: Refusal, Acceptance, Backlash' published by OUP in 2019.