The ISDS regime has received a number of criticisms in the last 15
years, which has led to the current reform efforts under the UNCITRAL Working
Group III. Unfortunately, investors do not have any concrete representation in
that process, hence the need to fill this gap. In this context, in 2020 the
School of International Arbitration at the Centre for Commercial Law Studies,
Queen Mary University of London (QM), conducted a survey on investors’ views on
the reform process (QM survey). This article uses the findings of the QM survey
to compare States’ and investors’ views on the reform process. Despite being
often represented as two conflicting and irreconcilable views, they are closer
than one would expect. In light of this, it concludes by suggesting how one can
use the QM survey results to focus reform efforts and achieve better results
for all stakeholders.