Analyzing Investors’ Corporate Social Responsibility to Ensure Human Rights’ Protection in Investment Agreements

Abstract

Determining the roles of foreign investors in relation to human rights is still mostly stagnant, despite advancements being made in the business and human rights fields about corporate responsibility for human rights. The notion that companies should uphold human rights is deeply ingrained in international law and is predicated on what society expects from companies operating in the twenty-first century. International investment law remains mute on the subject despite the fact that it is widely acknowledged. This creates a gap between public international law rules governing corporations' human rights responsibilities and international investment law norms. Introducing investor commitments to human rights is one method to better integrate the advancement of the business and human rights movement with international investment law. These responsibilities can be found in both non-treaty sources and investment treaties. Furthermore, investment arbitration gives tribunals a variety of ways to assess these duties, including through jurisdictional, admissibility, and counterclaims. The introduction of investor obligations for human rights has two main advantages. First, it can serve as a means of enforcing general business and human rights rules. Second, and perhaps more significantly, establishing investor responsibilities for human rights can aid in providing a more accurate framework for interpreting international investment agreements. The introduction of such responsibilities serves as a useful tool in reminding arbitrators that human rights and other non-investment concerns are part of the framework within which international investment law operates. However, taking such commitments into account by themselves is unlikely to lead to more significant changes in international investment law. However, encompasses investor responsibilities.