国际投资条约中的“利益拒绝”条款研究

A Study on the Denial of Benefits Clause in International Investment Treaties

国际投资条约中的"利益拒绝"条款的目的在于确保投资条约不被第三国投资者控制的所谓"邮箱公司"所利用。近年来该条款成为国际投资仲裁中争议较大的条款之一。该条款的适用条件具有模糊性,而其到底针对管辖权问题还是实体问题、如何具体实施该条款以及该条款的实施是否具有溯及力都具有较大的争议。对于这些争议,一方面由于不同条约的具体表述不同,因此仍需要进行个案分析,另一方面,由于相关案例尚不十分丰富,因此某些仲裁庭也不能给出十分准确解释。因此,对于该条款的研究有助于日后相关条约的立法,也有利于仲裁员正确理解该条款。

The purpose of the denial of benefits clause in international investment treaty is to preclude the abusive use of the treaty by a mailbox company controlled by a third party＇s investor. This clause has been a quite controversial one in international investment cases in recent years. Its applicable conditions are ambiguous. And there is also a controversy over the jurisdiction or merits, the exercise of the clause and its retrospective effect. These controversies, on the one hand, need to be analyzed case by case due to the different texts of different treaties; on the other hand, some arbitration tribunals cannot give accurate in- terpretations because of the inadequate quantity of relevant cases. Therefore, the study on this clause is helpful to the future legislation on relevant treaties and to the arbitrators＂ correct interpretation of it.