Submitted Abstract
Bringing together academics and practitioners from tax and international law backgrounds, the conference examined the settlement of tax disputes under international law, with the aim of analysing taxation issues through the lens of international law and its dispute settlement procedures. Topics discussed included the interaction between taxation and investor rights as protected under international investment agreements. Taxation measures are often sought to be excluded from the scope of such agreements. But taxation can affect investor rights, when its effect is tantamount to expropriation, or when it imposes disproportionate or discriminatory burden on foreign investors. The conference also examined was the relationship between tax law and international human rights law. States’ imposition of taxes must be exercised in accordance with human rights principles. These limits will be examined by reference, in particular, to the jurisprudence the European Court of Justice and the European Court of Human Rights. Finally, the conference discussed the dispute settlement mechanisms in double taxation agreements and their relationships with other forms on international dispute settlement. The final session of the conference was devoted to the work of junior scholars (selected through an open call for papers), with discussants drawn from the other speakers, thus providing those selected with a unique opportunity to present their work and have it critiqued before an informed and interested audience.