Investor–State Dispute Settlement Systems in Emerging Mega‐Integration Blocs

Emerging mega‐integration blocs, such as the Trans‐Pacific Partnership and the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership, are evolving outside of the World Trade Organization's influence. Their most contested features are their investor–state dispute settlement (ISDS) systems. This article considers basic features of the ISDS system, the expansion in the number of ISDS cases and the privileged place of corporations vis‐à‐vis citizens in the law‐making process. The arcane private corporation‐friendly ISDS system is beyond reparation and it needs to be scrapped. The existing court systems in the self‐assured democracies of Europe, North America and Australia are sufficient.