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LATEST INSIGHTS
Who Makes the Rules When Investment Moves?
Investment law is often described as technical, specialised, even neutral. Yet the rules that govern cross-border investment are not impartial; they reflect particular interests and priorities, protecting capital while leaving communities vulnerable to disruption. Large-scale investment reshapes governance itself: it constrains state regulation, locks in policy choices, and externalises social and environmental costs to local…
Diana Kanyuithia
PhD Researcher in International Economic Law | Investment & Development
What I do
Position and Focus
Investment law is not neutral: it structures power, allocates risk, and determines whose interests are protected—often with significant consequences for local communities and long-term development trajectories.
Therefore, my work provides research-driven advisory and analysis in international investment law, with a particular focus on investment governance, investor–state dispute settlement (ISDS), and sustainable development.
I work with policymakers, researchers, and institutions seeking to better understand how legal frameworks shape development outcomes, especially in Africa.
Work
Work With Me
I provide research and advisory services in four interconnected areas:
These services support institutions, researchers, and policy actors seeking rigorous analysis and informed perspectives on the interaction between investment governance, regulatory frameworks, and development policy.
I. Insights
Inisghts offer concise analytical interventions on investment law and governance. Each piece goes beyond description to examine how legal frameworks operate in practice: how authority is structured, power is allocated, and bargaining space is shaped among states, investors, and communities.
This is covered in three interconnected themes: Law and Power, Sustainability and Communities, and Conflict Resolution.
Pillar I. Law and Power
Rules within the international investment law allocate authority among states, markets, and communities. This area examines how such frameworks shape economic outcomes, political authority, and global hierarchies, often in ways that remain unnoticed until crises arise.
Pillar II. Sustainability and Communities
Assessment of how investment regimes influence land, livelihoods, environmental sustainability, and the inclusion or exclusion of communities in economic decision-making.
Pillar III. Conflict resolution
Analysis of arbitration, tribunals, ISDS and other dispute resolution mechanisms, with attention to access, fairness, and how existing systems distribute benefits and burdens.
II. Analytical Foundations
Analytical Foundations sit at the intersection of theory and practice, combining legal doctrine, case analysis, and interpretive frameworks to explain how investment law operates.It includes rules and concepts, case studies, legal theories and definitions of key terms to support precise and consistent analysis.
Rules/Concepts
Core legal rules, doctrines, and analytical concepts that shape investment governance, power relations, and decision-making in international law.
Case Studies
Focused examinations of real international or local investment disputes and regulatory conflicts, illustrating how legal rules operate in practice and affect states, communities, and markets.
Legal Theories
Clear explanations of the foundational ideas, philosophical frameworks, and interpretive approaches that underpin how law is understood, applied, and critiqued in international investment and sustainable development governance.
Glossary
A concise reference guide defining key terms and technical language used across investment law, sustainability, and conflict resolution.
III. Policy and Legal Analysis
Policy and Legal Analysis provides applied work translating legal structures into strategy, risk assessment, and reform. Includes policy briefs, case analyses, and targeted legal guidance.
Policy Brief
Concise analyses translating complex legal and governance issues into actionable recommendations for policymakers, regulators, and stakeholders.
Case Memo
Focused legal analyses of specific disputes, illustrating strategic, procedural, and interpretive considerations in investment law.
Strategic and Regulatory Analysis
In-depth, practice-oriented analyses linking legal structures, market conditions, and policy constraints to provide strategic guidance for governments, investors, and intermediaries—supporting interpretation, compliance, risk management, and forward-looking investment decisions.