Posts Tagged ‘Security and public order’
Foreign Direct Investment in Thailand
By Lukas Baumgärtner, Mag. Iur, LL.M., Attorney at Law at Luther Rechtsanwaltsgesellschaft (Bangkok and Yangon) I. INTRODUCTION Thailand has demonstrated a significant trajectory of economic development over recent decades, with foreign direct investment (ʺFDIʺ) being an important contributor to this success. FDI inflows stood at USD 10 billion in 2022, down by 31.5% compared…
Read More ...The First Court Decision on the Austrian FDI Screening Regime
By Dr. Johannes Barbist, Binder Grösswang I. Introduction A regular CELIS blog reader will know already: Austria is at the forefront of EU jurisdictions when it comes to FDI filings submitted to the EU cooperation mechanism (counted by population, see here for a compilation of the data). However, until very recently there were no…
Read More ...Conference on Investment Screening in Austria
On Thursday, 13. June 2024, the second edition of the annual conference on investment screening in Austria and the EU will take place at the University of Vienna. The aim is to convene experts from academia and legal practice to discuss topical issues of investment screening and further legal initiatives designed to strengthen the EU’s open…
Read More ...CFIUS should steel itself from domestic presidential politics. On Biden’s public intervention on the Nippon Steel-US Steel Acquisition
By Thomas P. Feddo, founder of The Rubicon Advisors LLC and former Assistant Treasury Secretary for Investment Security (2019-2021) This blogpost elaborates on the opinion piece ‘Biden, CFIUS and the US Steel Acquisition’ authored by Feddo and published on the Wall Street Journal (15 April 2024) In December 2023, Nippon Steel and US…
Read More ...Corporate Sustainability in the EU and the Obstacle Race to Eliminate Products of Forced Labour: a Pyrrhic Victory?
By Nicola Mongelli, LL.M (University of Antwerp) Introduction On the 23rd of April 2024, the European Parliament (EP), concluded the first reading of the text of the upcoming Regulation prohibiting products made with forced labour on the Union market. This contribution will comment on the Regulation on Products of Forced Labour (PFL Regulation), addressing some…
Read More ...UK investment screening: Government confirms commitment to a more pro-investment approach and sets out next steps
By Veronica Roberts and Ruth Allen, Herbert Smith Freehills LLP On 18 April 2024 the UK Government published its response to feedback from stakeholders on the operation of the UK National Security and Investment (NSI) regime since it entered into force in January 2022, gathered via a Call for Evidence issued in November 2023 (see our…
Read More ...The EU Economic Security Strategy: a Novel Approach or the Reemergence of an Old Idea?
[This blog post summarizes the following article: A. Lymperopoulos, ‘The EU Economic Security Strategy: a Novel Approach or the Reemergence of an Old Idea?’ (2024) 1 European State Aid Law Quarterly 40.] 1. What is Economic Security? The recent Economic Security Strategy (Strategy) of the European Commission (EC) introduces a new dogma in the trade…
Read More ...KlimaSeniorinnen: how did the ECtHR define States’ climate policy obligations?
Charlotte Dierickx-Visschers is a student researcher and LLM student at the University of Antwerp. She mainly focuses on sustainable development, environmental justice and fundamental rights law. On the 9th of April, the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) delivered three long-awaited rulings involving States’ obligations to mitigate climate change. Whereas two cases were declared inadmissible,…
Read More ...The Role of US Investments for EU Technology Sovereignty
Dr Matthias Bauer, Director at ECIPE and Ms Dyuti Pandya, Junior Analyst at ECIPE Industry data point to a considerable investment disparity between US and EU digital companies, underscoring the role of US tech investments in the EU’s Information and Communications Technology (ICT) sector and highlighting the mutual interdependence between the two regions. In…
Read More ...What Role For Indonesian State-Owned Enterprises After The Presidential Elections?
By Pierfrancesco Mattiolo, University of Antwerp The Indonesian economy is growing at a rapid pace, following a model that combines free market principles with State planning. During the administration of President Joko Widodo, State-Owned Enterprises have gained even more prominence. How will his successor Prabowo Subianto wield this tool? Over the next twenty years,…
Read More ...Strengthening the Biting Effect of EU Restrictive Measures Via Criminal Law – Some Critical Remarks
By Lorenzo Bernardini, University of Luxembourg This blog post summarizes some insights that are detailed in a forthcoming contribution to issue 1/2024 of the European Criminal Law Review (EuCLR). The author would like to express his heartfelt gratitude to Dr. Iryna Bogdanova for her kind invitation to contribute to the CELIS Blog. 1.…
Read More ...Investment Screening in the UK under the 2021 National Security and Investment Act
By Agata Daszko, University of Göttingen In recent years the United Kingdom (UK) has joined many States in updating its legislation concerning scrutiny of national security issues when it comes to investments made in key or sensitive sectors. Indeed, the UK’s approach to investment screening underwent a significant transformation with the introduction of the…
Read More ...The Politization of Trade Defence Instruments
By Victor Crochet and Weihuan Zhou Trade defence instruments used to be described as dull and technical, of little interest except as a money maker for a handful of trade lawyers in Washington, Brussels and other administrative capitals. There are two main trade defence instruments aimed at protecting Members of the World Trade Organization (“WTO”)…
Read More ...The New Significant Investments Review Act of Singapore – Some Insights and Lessons for Europe
By Philipp Reinhold, Saarland University Singapore is known for a legal framework and public policies which are generally favourable towards foreign investors.[1] The country is one of the most open economies in the world. For 2023 as a whole, net inflows of direct investment rose by S$17.6 billion (around US$13 billion) to S$151 billion…
Read More ...The Quest for Policy Coherence between Competition Law and Foreign Investment Screening in the EU: Consistency or Disruption?
By Pietro Chiarelli, European Central Bank Disclaimer: This blog post was prepared by the author in his personal capacity. The opinions expressed in the blog post are the author’s own and do not reflect the view of the ECB. Introduction Foreign investment and competition are no strangers to one another. While the former is a…
Read More ...The notion of “security” in foreign trade law – Theory and Practice
By Dr. Carsten Bormann, Oppenhoff & Partner* 1. Introduction: All about security? The screening of foreign direct investment has gradually evolved from the traditional protection of vital national security interests through the prevention of outsourcing and the drain of specialized technological capabilities to the protection of geostrategic interests and the enforcement of industrial strategies. The…
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