The present book is based on a doctoral thesis that was submitted to
the Faculty of Law of the University of Lausanne, Switzerland, in 2012.
I would first of all like to thank Professor Andreas R. Ziegler for being the
principal instigator of this project and taking it out of Lausanne.
I would also like to thank the following, who have aided in the production
of this book in various ways: the Research Commission of the University of
Lausanne and the Swiss National Science Foundation, for funding an
important part of the research; the Socie´te´ acade´mique vaudoise, in
Lausanne, for contributing to it; Mrs A. Jane Bradley, former Deputy
Director of the Institute of International Economic Law at Georgetown
University,Washington, DC, for welcoming me at the institute, where I was
able to benefit from an optimal environment during an extended research
stay;Mrs Debra Steger, professor at the University of Ottawa, for taking me
on board the Emerging Dynamic Global Economies Network (EDGE)
Project, which proved a very stimulating experience and gave new impulses
to my research; Ryota Jonen, Senior Manager at the National Endowment
for Democracy (NED), Washington, DC; and Mr Philipp Frech, fellow
biker in Washington, DC.
Back in Switzerland, I would like to thank the following for their
financial, technical or artistic support in the final stage of this project:
my brother François, my mother Suzanne, my father Pierre, my aunt
Catherine, Jose´ Antonio Gonzales and Catherine Leutenegger.