This paper provides a first-ever detailed study of NPM provisions in all stand-alone BITs which are in force in South Asian countries. It studies 147 BITs of South Asian countries in order to map the NPM provisions in them. It makes an in-depth analysis of the NPM provisions found in these BITs, and then makes an analysis of the consequences of not having NPM provisions in BITs. This follows the dissection of the NPM provisions found, so as to study each and every permissible objective and nexus requirement link in these provisions. This is followed by suggestions and conclusions, where the paper holds that NPM provisions are not sufficiently used in the BITs of these countries and these countries should incorporate this provision more frequently in order to ensure some much-needed regulatory latitude to these countries.

Bangladesh recently established a new trademark regime in 2009, repealing the seventy-year-old statute that was enacted as a response of the colonial government to comply with the requirements of the Paris Convention. This newly established regime governing the protection of trademarks was particularly important in discharging Bangladesh’s obligations under the WTO Agreement on TRIPS. The present study is an attempt to examine the compatibility of Bangladeshi law with the TRIPS regime of trademarks. The major focus of this study is, however, confined to the TRIPS compatibility of the Trademarks Act in relation to the aspects of acquisition and cancellation of trademark rights in particular, and the nature and scope of these rights in general. In so doing, this paper thus speaks of the success and ramifications of the present regime in exploiting the TRIPS flexibilities—the challenge that Bangladesh is supposed to encounter as a member of LDCs.

Sri Lanka is the first country against which a foreign investor has had recourse to international arbitration based on the dispute settlement clause in a bilateral investment treaty (BIT). This was the case of AAPL v. Sri Lanka. Since then, the country has been challenged twice before the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID), while its latest encounter was in the case of Deutsche Bank AG v. Sri Lanka. In the intervening years between these two cases, Sri Lanka maintained silence and failed to alter its BITs in a global context where the conventional attitude on international investment agreements (IIAs) is being increasingly reconsidered. This paper provides an overview of Sri Lanka’s BITs, which highlights the urgency of reconsidering the country’s investment treaty-making practice. It suggests some modifications to align the country’s investment treaty-making practice with international investment law (IIL) developments.

This paper examines the evolution of expropriation provisions contained in Singapore’s bilateral investment treaties and free trade agreements from the 1970s until now. It will be seen that whilst earlier treaties contained skeletal expropriation provisions, the later treaties have sought to guide the exercise of tribunals’ discretion by providing a non-exhaustive list of factors to be taken into account when indirect expropriation is alleged. The consequences of this evolution in Singapore’s treaty-making practice are considered in the light of customary international law. The paper postulates a framework for analyzing Singapore’s treaty practice and this author concludes by submitting that the later treaties arguably go one step further in limiting the scope of indirect expropriation.

Russia’s veto in the Security Council of a proposed ad hoc tribunal for the Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 disaster prompts consideration of alternative mechanisms to bring the offenders to justice. It is arguable that the General Assembly, drawing upon the text of the UN Charter and the Uniting for Peace mechanism, possesses the constitutional powers to establish the tribunal. The unique features of the General Assembly, comprising the international community, also mean that it is able to act in a way that would facilitate the functioning of an ad hoc tribunal, even in the absence of mandatory powers. Although many practical obstacles lie ahead, an ad hoc tribunal established by a broad coalition in the General Assembly may offer the best hope in securing accountability for the MH17 disaster.

This paper explains why so much soft law is widely adopted and followed despite lacking legal and coercive force. It argues that legal standards are susceptible to network effects. Network effects occur when the value of a standard to a user increases as the number of other agents using the same standard grows, which in turn draws more users to the standard. This can trigger a spontaneous coalescence around a standard in a “snowball effect” fashion. The paper argues that many areas of soft law exhibit strong network effects, rendering such soft law uniquely calibrated to induce voluntary adoption and even compliance. The model helps explain why certain soft law gains traction, and has important implications for international governance. Finally, the paper argues that policy-makers can strategically harness this dynamic to stimulate legal harmonization, but cautions that policy-makers must also remain mindful of the negative consequences that network effects can generate.