ISDS Case Map
NAFTA | USMCA
The president-elect has promised to rip up the free trade treaty, yet there is no sign that his approach will be any fairer
There has been no overarching ‘Latin America’ policy under the outgoing administration. This overall situation will largely remain the same under the Trump administration.
First is renegotiating or withdrawing from NAFTA, second is stopping the Trans-Pacific Partnership deal, third is stopping "unfair imports," fourth is ending "unfair trade practices," and fifth is pursuing bilateral trade deals.
NAFTA, critics say, included investment provisions that inherently created an uneven playing field, allowing corporate investors to directly sue national governments for mega-millions and ultimately sidestep domestic environmental laws.
The TPP threatens to extend the most draconian feature of the contemporary free trade model: private corporation’s ability to sue sovereign nations.
A company that planned a huge offshore wind farm in Lake Ontario says it has been awarded more than $25-million in damages, because the Ontario government cancelled its project.
International trade agreement provisions once meant to protect investors today can challenge a nation’s sovereignty and invalidate environmental laws.
A secretive global legal system gives corporations leverage over the countries where they operate. Everyone said the United States didn’t have anything to worry about, because American laws are fair to begin with. Everyone was wrong.
A parallel legal universe, open only to corporations and largely invisible to everyone else, helps executives convicted of crimes escape punishment.
Proposals like the Alliance for Prosperity Plan and the Trans-Pacific Partnership will only accelerate a race to the bottom for families in the Northern triangle of Latin America.
