(30.April 2019)

The European Court of Justice (ECJ) today ruled that provisions for investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS, rebranded as ICS – Investment Court System) in the EU-Canada trade deal CETA are compatible with EU law.

This decision dangerously legitimises a mechanism that enables companies to claim multi-billion sum damages from governments that dare to stand up to their power. The ruling also comes as a blow to millions of citizens who have spoken out against this parallel justice system for corporations, most recently, more than 555,000 petitioners from all over Europe demanded an end to the ISDS system in all its forms.