Nafta Capítulo 11

North American Free Trade Agreement (Chapter Eleven: Investment)
Section A - Investment
Section A of NAFTA Chapter 11 outlines the various obligations agreed to by the NAFTA Parties with respect to treatment of investors and investments of the other NAFTA Parties in their territories. These obligations, which are subject to reservations or exceptions taken by the NAFTA Parties, the principalideas includes the following:
* National Treatment: Each NAFTA Party will treat investors and investments from other NAFTA Parties no less favourably that it treats its own investors and investments, in like circumstances, with respect to such matters as the establishment, acquisition, operation and sale of investments.
* Most-Favoured Nation Treatment: A NAFTA Party may not treat aninvestor or investment from a non-NAFTA country more favourably than an investor or investment from a NAFTA country with respect to such matters as the establishment, acquisition, operation and sale of investments.
* Minimum Standard of Treatment: This Article assures a minimum absolute standard of treatment of investments of NAFTA investors based on long-standing principles of customaryinternational law.
* Performance Requirements: This Article prohibits a NAFTA Party from imposing or enforcing certain performance requirements, such as export requirements and domestic content rules, in connection with the establishment, acquisition, expansion, management, conduct or operation of investments. It also prohibits using the specified performance requirements as conditions attached toadvantages such as subsidies, including tax incentives.
* Senior Management and Boards of Directors: Parties are prohibited from imposing a nationality requirement on senior personnel employed by an enterprise that is an investment of an investor of another NAFTA Party.
* Transfers: A NAFTA Party must permit an investor of another NAFTA Party to make transfers of funds related to itsinvestments (such as profits, dividends, interest and royalty payments) freely and without delay.
* Expropriation: A NAFTA Party cannot directly or indirectly nationalize or expropriate an investment of an investor of another NAFTA Party except: (i) for a public purpose; (ii) on a non-discriminatory basis; (iii) in accordance with due process of law; and (iv) on payment of compensation equivalentto fair market value.
* Environmental Measures: The NAFTA Parties have the right to adopt and enforce environmental measures consistent with the chapter. NAFTA Parties also recognize that it is inappropriate to encourage investment by relaxing domestic health, safety or environmental measures. Accordingly, Parties should not waive or derogate from such environmental measures to attractinvestment.

Section B - Settlement of Disputes between a Party and an Investor of Another Party
Section B of Chapter Eleven of NAFTA establishes an arbitration procedure that allows investors to sue a foreign state for violations of the treaty on investment that will cause you monetary damages. The purpose of this mechanism is to restore investment property investor, or compensate him for monetarydamages that were caused by the violation, including, where appropriate, the costs. However, the panel may award punitive damages.

The parties can use this procedure investors of a State in respect of their investments in the foreign state's alleged rape. Investors, however, can not sue the government of the country of which they are nationals. This is consistent with the principle ofinternational reciprocity since, although nationals of a country can not sue the government for violations in the matter, do enjoy that right in respect of its investment in another NAFTA Party.
For this reason, a company (legal person) of a party, however it is a foreign investment, can not sue the state in which it is established, but through the foreign investor owns or holds such investment...