LUCRATIVE INVESTOR-STATE DISPUTE SETTLEMENT (ISDS) LAWSUITS

In recent months, international law firms have been encouraging ISDS lawsuits citing government measures to check contagion and mitigate their economic consequences, urging clients to invoke investment and trade agreements to claim for allegedly lost income or additional losses or costs due to new government policy measures.

Another firmRopes & Grayadvises: "Governments have responded to COVID-19 with a panoply of measures, including...limitations on business operations, and tax benefits.Notwithstanding their legitimacy, these measures can negatively impact businesses by reducing profitability, delaying operations, orbeing excluded from government benefits...For companies with foreign investments, investment agreements could be a powerful tool to recover or prevent loss resulting from COVID-19 related government actions."

Shearman & Sterlingadvises, "Some interventions will be protectionistthey will seek to support or benefit domestic enterprises (strategic or otherwise) but not foreign investors", without mentioning their generally far lower tax contributions and generous investment incentives enjoyed. Discuss.

~ Jomo Kwame Sundaram,18^th August 2020~

1. The effect on government expenditures in this Covid-19 pandemic and how the impact on the AD, C, Yd, Y, T?
2. Your opinion based on macroeconomics policies & support by the macroeconomics theories.

• For example,knowing the current economic condition+ issues highlighted from the question, should the government implement expansionary/contractionary policies? Justify your answer and what is the probability impact of that action.
• Overview of the current economic conditions & what are the challenges faced by the government