Newsletter-21

218 NEWSLETTER 2016 consent to arbitration may only be concerned with expropriations. It is almost common practice for the host states that the claims of the inves- tor claimants are out of scope of the consent to arbitrate. However, it may be opined that investment arbitration panels are open to interpret the consent extensively, and reject the arguments for restrictive inter- pretations. As well, the arbitration may also be held subject to preliminary conditions. For instance, the investor may be obliged to seek amicable settlement, or submit the dispute first to the courts of the host state. Moreover, the consent to arbitrate may be a “fork in the road” provi- sion, which stipulates that the investor must apply either to domestic courts or to international arbitration courts, but the choice is final: The investor cannot benefit from a second choice to submit its dispute to another authority. Conclusion The disputes arising from investments made by foreign investors within a host state may be submitted to arbitration courts, only if the host state and the investor have an arbitration agreement, as is the same for commercial arbitrations. However, in investment arbitra- tions, the arbitration agreement is mostly executed indirectly between the parties. In general, the host states offer their consent, and the inves- tor provides its acceptance at a further stage. The legal problems that may arise for arbitration agreements regarding commercial disputes may also arise for those regarding investment disputes and, of course, there may be some additional legal discussions that are specific to investment arbitrations, and the consent of the host states should be carefully reviewed.