The Multilateralization of International Investment Law

'Stephan Schill's book, The Multilateralization of International Investment Law, stands apart from the rest of the literature on international investment law which has burgeoned in the past few years. In contrast to most publications on the market, this volume, adapted from the author's Ph.D. thesis, does not attempt to summarize and systematize the developments in arbitral practice. Instead, it reveals an important and previously unexplored dimension of the investment treaty phenomenon by presenting an original vision of the landscape formed by more than 3,000 international investment agreements (IIAs). The author advances and substantiates the seemingly counter-intuitive thesis that these predominantly bilateral instruments do not result in chaotic fragmentation but, taken together, 'function analogously to a truly multilateral system'.' Sergey Ripinsky, United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, Geneva

'A distinctive feature of the book is that it is not limited to traditional legal analysis, but is grounded in the broader social, economic, and ideological reality. In doing so, the author has relied upon an impressive range of literature from related fields such as law and economics and international relations. As a result, he manages cleverly and harmoniously to combine a big-picture view with a detailed analysis of BIT provisions and arbitral practice. The drafting style is exceptionally clear … this wide-ranging analysis offers longer-term rewards by significantly advancing the understanding of the foundations, rationales, structure, and operation of the current system of international investment law.' globallawbooks.org

'In a field where much of the secondary literature is merely descriptive or reactive (or both), Schill's deep consideration of the issues offers a fresh perspective, and it is to be warmly welcomed into the literature.' Chester Brown, Australian International Law Journal