This report discusses the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) comprising nine members, two ex officio members, and other members as appointed by the President representing major departments and agencies within the federal executive branch. While the group generally has operated in relative obscurity, the proposed acquisition of commercial operations at six U.S. ports by Dubai Ports World in 2006 placed the group's operations under intense scrutiny by Members of Congress and the public.

This book outlines the principles behind the international law of foreign investment. The main focus is on the law governed by bilateral and multilateral investment treaties. It traces the purpose, context, and evolution of the clauses and provisions characteristic of contemporary investment treaties, and analyses the case law, interpreting the issues raised by standard clauses. Particular consideration is given to broad treaty-rules whose understanding in practice has mainly been shaped by their interpretation and application by international tribunals. In addition, the book introduces the dispute settlement mechanisms for enforcing investment law, outlining the operation of Investor-State arbitration. Combining a systematic analytical study of the texts and principles underlying investment law with a jurisprudential analysis of the case law arising in international tribunals, this book offers an ideal introduction to the principles of international investment law and arbitration, for students, scholars, and practitioners alike.

An examination of the origins of international investment law and their continued resonance in the twenty-first century.

The law of foreign investment is at a crossroads. In the wake of an unprecedented global financial crisis and a sharp surge of investment arbitration cases, states around the world are reflecting on the pros and cons of the current liberal investment regime and exploring new ways ahead. This book brings together leading investment lawyers from more than 20 main jurisdictions of the world to tackle the challenge of producing a first comparative study of foreign investment law. Based on the General and National Reports presented at the 'Protection of Foreign Investment' Session at the 18th International Congress of the International Academy of Comparative Law (Washington DC, July 2010), the book is a unique resource for investment lawyers. Part I of the book presents a comparative overview of key aspects of foreign investment protection in the world today, including admission, investment contracts, treatment standards, tax regime and incentives, performance requirement, property and expropriation, monetary transfer and dispute settlement. Part II presents in-depth and detailed accounts of the investment laws of more than 20 jurisdictions, including Argentina, Australia, Canada, China, Croatia, Czech Republic, Ethiopia, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Japan, South Korea, Macau, Peru, Portugal, Russia, Singapore, Slovenia, Turkey, the UK and the USA. The book will be an invaluable guide to legal and business communities with an interest in the law and practice of foreign investment in the world in general and in these jurisdictions in particular.

Examines foreign direct investment (FDI) in the United States, the national security concerns associated with this investment, and treatment of these concerns under US policy. This book asks whether the Committee on Foreign Investments in the United States (CFIUS) process can be improved and answers in the affirmative.Does foreign ownership of American businesses pose a threat to the United States (like the abortive attempt by CNOOC, a Chinese company, to purchase Unocal during the summer of 2005)? This important new book examines foreign direct investment (FDI) in the United States, the national security concerns associated with this investment, and treatment of these concerns under US policy. It asks whether the Committee on Foreign Investments in the United States (CFIUS) process can be improved and answers in the affirmative. The book starts by looking at the review process for foreign takeovers of US firms (including a historical review), looks at the economic and political impact on the United States of foreign direct investment, takes a detailed look at issues relating to FDI posed by the rise of China as an economic and geopolitical power and finally suggests some changes to the Exon-Florio process.