The commercial and investment relations between Thailand and the Czech Republic are longstanding. Currently, the Czech Republic imports a number of agricultural products and food from Thailand, and Thailand imports industrial technology from the Czech Republic. As a result, there are opportunities for Czech companies to invest in and establish business cooperation with Thai businesses with agreements to guarantee stable commercial investment relations between Thailand and the Czech Republic. Because of this, the Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIT) between both countries facilitates further development. The dissertation deals with research about the Protection of Investments under the Bilateral Investment Treaty between Thailand and the Czech Republic. The first BIT between Thailand and the Czech Republic was the 'Agreement between the Government of the Czech and Slovak Federal Republic and the Government of the Kingdom of Thailand for the Promotion and Protection of Investments (1991)' which was replaced by the 'Agreement between the Government of the Kingdom of Thailand and the Government of the Czech Republic for the Promotion and Protection of Investments (1994) (BIT between Thailand and the Czech Republic 1994), and this BIT is still in force and has not been modified or amended. The object of...

「雙邊投資協定」是「發展中國家」為積極引進外國資本，與「已開發國家」為有效保護本國投資者間之互惠保障機制。於1990年代以來，因跨國企業數擴大而增加投資活動，因此也擴大投資的規模，故而對投資規範之需求必要性愈來愈增加。「雙邊投資協定」作爲目前最通用的國際投資規範，最近全世界所簽訂之雙邊投資協定的數量為約2,700多個(約180個國家)，惟由於世界上就雙邊投資協定内容還沒統一的形態，而且協定規定上缺乏具體性基準，針對協定内容，已開發國家與發展中國家之間見解往往相左。 其中「徵收條款」是理論解釋上最引起爭論的領域之一。不過迄今與徵收有關協定之實踐過程中，資本輸出國（已開發國家）和資本輸入國（發展中國家）間之理解有很大的差異，即在於絕對多數的雙邊投資協定中，對於徵收條款沒有判斷標準（如間接徵收）、補償標準（如赫爾規則）、補償額價格估價方式（如公平市場價格）之具體基準。 本論文基於雙邊投資協定之現行趨勢，想要研究雙邊投資協定的一般概念與徵收的相關具體内容，尤其為準備臺灣與韓國間簽訂雙邊投資協定的可能性，先觀察最近韓國、臺灣與各國所簽訂的雙邊投資協定之現況，其次則想要比較該協定的徵收條款，進一步嘗試關於未來臺、韓兩國之雙邊投資協定徵收條款之制定方向提出若干意見。

Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) is one of the factors that can influence the growth and development of the economy of a country, but on the other hand, it could have a negative effect if not regulated properly by the host country. States must ensure that FDI is properly regulated in the best interests of the country and the foreign investor itself. South Africa has reviewed its foreign investment legal framework and during this process, it terminated most of its bilateral investment treaties that previously regulated foreign investment in the country. In turn, it introduced the Protection of Protection of Investment Act that regulates both domestic and foreign investment. This study analyses the way in which national and international investment law affect FDI inflow and the economy of South Africa. The study also deals with the determinants of foreign investment in the host country and the extent to which they have an influence on the inflow of FDI. / Public, Constitutional and International Law / LL. M.

At the dawn of democratic rule in the period 1994–1998, South Africa concluded 15 bilateral investment treaties (BITs), mostly with European nations. Some of these treaties were concluded before the Constitution of 1996. The country has since concluded a total of 47 BITs, with the majority not in effect as they were not ratified per the required constitutional processes. The policy decision to enter into BITs was taken by the African National Congress (ANC) government, led by the late former state president Nelson Mandela. The BITs were seen as an important guarantee to attract foreign investment into the country. The aim was to provide added assurance that foreign investments were safe in a democratic South Africa after many years of international isolation and sanctions. The conventional wisdom at the time was that BITs would increase foreign investor appetite to invest and the country would experience rising levels of foreign direct investment (FDI) as a result. This would facilitate economic growth and the transition of the country into the global economy. South Africa concluded BITs with seven of the top ten investor countries. In October 2013 the South African government cancelled a number of BITs with these European countries invested in South Africa. These countries – namely Belgium, Luxembourg, Spain, Switzerland, Germany and the Netherlands – complained of lack of consultation by the South Africans. On 1 November 2013 the Minister of Trade and Industry published, in Government Gazette No 36995, the Promotion and Protection of Investment Bill (PPIB or Investments Bill) as the proposed primary legislative instrument for the protection of foreign investments. This created much uncertainty among many European nations as well as in the United States of America (US), who were concerned about the motivation for cancelling bilateral treaties in favour of domestic legislation. BITs had been a part of the policy instruments regulating foreign investments in the country for over 20 years. Globally these treaties have been used to regulate foreign investments in a number of areas, and to provide protection to investments such as full protection and security, guaranteed pre-establishment rights, ease of repatriation of funds, most-favoured nation, fair and equitable treatment, national treatment and efficient dispute settlement mechanisms, among other provisions. In most cases international arbitration via the International Centre for the Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) and other international arbitral mediums has been a standard provision in the treaties. This has allowed foreign investors to bypass host countries’ legal systems. The latter is believed to be a significant inducement for foreign investors, guaranteeing that should a dispute arise, or if an expropriation occurs, the investor could institute an international arbitral process against the host government. International arbitration is preferred by foreign investors for the reason that, in some cases, domestic courts may lack independence from the state, and may make partial rulings that do not protect investors. Furthermore, international arbitration processes are more efficient and produce rulings faster than domestic courts, which are usually burdened with bureaucratic procedures and limited resources. In cases where delay exacerbates injury, prompt resolution of disputes is preferable. This study evaluates the Investments Bill and the rationale applied by the government of South Africa to cancel BITs with major trade and investment partners in favour of this legislation. The thesis focuses on the Investments Bill, in light of the objective provided by the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) for its enactment to law. The Investments Bill is subjected to a constitutional analysis to determine its compliance therewith. Comparisons are also made between the Investments Bill provisions and the prevailing international law principles on foreign investments. The Investments Bill is then critically evaluated against emerging trends on FDI regulation on the African continent to determine its congruence or lack thereof with best practice recommendations at regional economic community (REC) and African Union (AU) level. The thesis concludes with a set of policy recommendations to the DTI on how to improve South African policies related to the regulation of foreign investments taking into account the national imperative as well as Southern African Development Community (SADC) and other broader African continental objectives of harmonisation of FDI regulation, including the Tripartite Free Trade Area (FTA) implementation. The timing of this thesis is significant for South Africa. It adds to various deliberations that are taking place as the Investments Bill is set to makes its way through the legislative approval processes in 2015. The Bill has been met with opposition from some segments of society. Others have expressed support – including several state departments, the ANC, the South African Communist Party (SACP) and other political formations. The summary of findings contained in the thesis will be presented to the DTI to influence policy directions of the state in terms of foreign investment regulations. Should the Bill be enacted, the Minister of Trade and Industry is required to promulgate the dispute resolution mechanism that will govern investment disputes. The findings of this study will be important to the determination of how such dispute resolution mechanisms may function. Furthermore, in 2010 Cabinet instructed the DTI to develop a model new-generation BIT Template to be utilised by South Africa, should a compelling reason arise to enter into bilateral agreements. The research results will assist policy-makers to develop policies that are consistent with and align with the overarching Africa strategy that has been heavily promoted by South Africa. The country faces a number of challenges, particularly those related to low economic growth, high levels of poverty, unemployment and record levels of inequality. The gap between the rich and poor, in terms of the Gini coefficient, was 0,67 based on the World Bank Development Research Group Report of 2010. It is reported as one of the highest in the world and is believed to have worsened since the dawn of democracy. / Public, Constitutional and International Law / LL. D. (Public, Constitutional and International Law)

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Transnational corporations are playing an important role in the global economy of today. Many of these corporations have great economic resources and have the possibility of contributing to the development of societies in developing states. At the same time, in their search for profit, the activities of TNCs have proven fatal to some of the individuals employed by them, or otherwise in contact with their activities. Within the international legal framework, corporations are not traditionally treated as subjects and if a TNC allocates its production to a state with lax human rights protection, no binding international standards exist to regulate the conduct of the corporation.  In my thesis I will assess the position of TNCs under the present core human rights instruments and soft law initiatives. I will also analyze a draft treaty text produced by the Intergovernmental Working Group on Business and Human Rights, released in July 2018, to reach a conclusion on whether such an instrument would affect the international legal status of TNCs and provide a more robust protection of international human rights.