Constitutional Courts and International Investment Law in Latin America: Between Escalation and Conditional Coexistence

Abstract

Constitutional courts are important actors in the development of international investment law). I argue here that constitutional courts can exert more influence and protect human rights and national constitutional values more efficiently if they operate within a method of conditional coexistence. This path implies that constitutional courts manage normative conflicts between investment agreements (IIAs) and a national constitution by defining a set of minimum conditions that IIAs must satisfy before they enter into force. The very exercise of setting conditions for IIAs can allow a constitutional court to monitor the application and interpretation of that IIA, providing themselves with leeway to react to a range of possible dynamics in respect of the future development of an investment treaty.

Keywords: Pluralism, legitimacy, international investment law, Constitutional Courts