The World Trade Organization was created in 1995 through Uruguay Round of Trade Negotiations. The WTO provides both a trade liberalization role through international negotiations aimed at reducing tariff and nontariff barriers, and the adoption of rules to govern international trade. The WTO also provides a dispute settlement forum, established by the DSU, the Dispute Settlement Understanding, with an adjudicatory panel structure, and an Appellate Body. The WTO is the successor organization to the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade, which was a forum for negotiations, not the organization the WTO is.
For part I of this article, click here. I. Allegation Regarding Creation of Law: Lust? Now, to tackle head on the main argument of the authors: that the AB creates law when it has no business to do so. But, we ask: who is to blame? The WTO agreements as a whole (not just with…
Introduction Initially, we were unsure whether or not we should get embroiled in discussions flowing from the provocative three-part blog post by Jorge Miranda and Manuel Sánchez-Miranda (“authors”) on the topic of the World Trade Organization (“WTO”) Appellate Body’s (“AB”) current crisis.[1] The main argument of those authors was that the crisis is “in large…
Introduction The recent WTO Panel report in India-Export Related Measures (DS541) has significant implications for various export promotion schemes implemented by WTO Members. In this case, the United States challenged certain schemes implemented by India under the Foreign Trade Policy. These included the Export Oriented Unit (EOU) Scheme and Sector-Specific Schemes, Merchandise Exports from India…
In Part I of this post we introduce the subject and provide a first example of problematic AB findings. In Part II we discuss two additional examples. In this Part III we explain how the AB adopted an approach to creating case law that is “super hardline” as compared to how case law is created…
In Part I of this post we introduce the subject and provide a first example of problematic AB findings. In this Part II we discuss two additional examples. In Part III we explain how the AB adopted an approach to creating case law that is “super hardline” as compared to how case law is created…
The WTO dispute settlement system runs a serious risk of regressing by year end into the conditions that prevailed in the GATT era. The difference between the GATT and the WTO formulations of dispute settlement is gigantic. Under the GATT, compliance by the defendant with dispute settlement findings was, in practice, voluntary; under the WTO,…
This is the second of three posts where I comment on Mexico’s “new” agricultural policy. For Part I click here. In the first post I have presented evidence that, in constant prices, the 2019 budget allocations to the “mainline” subsidy programs in agriculture are at historically low levels. [1] In particular, acreage-based payments (irrespective of production levels)…
Source: https://www.reuters.com The legal position of the UK within the WTO is not in doubt: the UK has always been a full Member of the WTO and will remain so post-Brexit – the problem lies in determining the exact terms and conditions of its membership. It is unlikely that any issues will arise regarding the…
Please find below the journal abstract of “Brexit from a WTO/GATS Perspective: Towards an Easy Divorce?” by Rudolf Adlung, published in Journal of World Trade, Issue 5, Volume 52, 2018 edited by Edwin Vermulst. Virtually all studies dealing with the WTO-related aspects of Brexit, the United Kingdom’s (UK’s) envisaged separation from the European Union, tend to…
The idea of facilitating secure and compliant trade underpins many international agreements such as the WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA) and WCO Safe Framework of Standards (SAFE) and is reflected in many “Authorised Economic Operator” programmes such as our own Australian Trusted Trader Programme (ATTP). Government and its agencies also provide further assistance to those…
Please find below the abstract of “Brexit: Trade Governance and Legal Implications for Third Countries” by Martín Molinuevo, published in Journal of World Trade, issue 4, 2018 edited by Edwin Vermulst The impact of Brexit on the trade relations of EU/UK with third countries is likely to entail an extensive process of amendment to…
The Europa Institute of Leiden University is sixty years old. It was established in 1957, the year in which the Treaty establishing the European Economic Community was signed in Rome. To mark this 60th anniversary, a two-day lustrum conference was held in the Academic Building of the University of Leiden on 30 November and 1 December…
We wanted to draw your attention to some interesting articles about the topics of the Regulating for Globalization blog that appeared in the Global Trade and Customs Journal in 2018 so far: Martijn Schippers, ‘A Series of Sales: Determining the Customs Value Under the Union Customs Code’ (2018) 13, Issue 2 New customs legislation – the Union…
We wanted to draw your attention to some interesting articles about the topics of the Regulating for Globalization blog that appeared in the Global Trade and Customs Journal in 2017: Lorand Bartels, ‘The UK’s WTO Schedules’ (2017) 12, Issue 3 This article argues that the EU’s GATT and GATS schedules are binding on the UK in its…
On 28th February 2018 the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA)[1] confirmed that neonicotinoids – a class of pesticides — represent a risk to wild bees, bumble bees, and honeybees because their residues are found in bee pollen and nectar, dust drift during the sowing and application of the treated seeds, and are absorbed into water….
The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Paris Agreement was signed in December 2015 to widespread acclaim. Although largely symbolic and non-enforceable, it begat optimism that governments would act to substantially decrease carbon pollution. The agreement focuses on voluntary pledges to reduce carbon pollution in order to limit global warming to a 2.0°…
Welcome to the newest Wolters Kluwer law blog, conceived to explore the inter-relationship among labor law, European law, and trade law in these turbulent times. As the editor for trade law I expect this blog to provide a forum to report on timely developments and to offer insight and analysis beyond the facts. For me,…
Imagine living in a world in which trade comprised of only bilateral agreements. Do you suppose that such two-sided scenarios for trade relations would be capable of meeting the diverse needs of the world’s many trading partners? This view of the future is certainly hypothetical, but we are in fact right now observing a strong…
Keep pace with change. We are witnessing change at a very rapid pace. Brexit and “disTrumption,” among other developments, have changed the landscape for international business. A new blog will synthesize and make sense of these developments. The blog, initiated by Wolters Kluwer, will be called “Regulating for Globalization” and is designed to address the significant changes taking place…
