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The Public's View Of Foreign Trade: Pragmatic Internationalism, California Research Bureau

California Agencies

The Cold War has ended. The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), World Trade Organization (WTO), the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), and the European Union have changed the global political and economic landscape in only a few short years. This review draws together responses from national and California public opinion surveys over the past ten years to paint a broad picture of the public's views on foreign trade.

Double Protection: The Case Against The "Byrd Amendment" Of U.S. Trade Law, Perry S. Bechky, Anne Macgregor

Perry S. Bechky

Under the Byrd Amendment of 2000, all collected antidumping and countervailing duties must be distributed among U.S. companies that successfully petition for the imposition of those duties. The Byrd Amendment created an economic incentive for the proliferation of trade cases. A strong legal case can be made that the Byrd Amendment is inconsistent with WTO rules.

Civil Society At The Wto: The Illusion Of Inclusion?, Jeffrey L. Dunoff

ILSA Journal of International & Comparative Law

In this brief essay, I want to link our panel's focus on civil society-and related issues of inclusion and participation-with the broader conference theme of international law and organizations as we enter the 21st century.

The Economic Case For Labor Standards: A Layman’S Guide, Thomas I. Palley

Richmond Journal of Global Law & Business

The place of labor standards in the global economy has figured prominently in recent discussions of trade and globalization. Labor standards figured prominently in the Seattle meeting of the World Trade Organization (WTO) in 1999, and they promise to figure prominently in discussions about a proposed Free Trade Area of Americas (FTAA). Labor standards represent a critical issue for both the American labor movement and the international trade union movement as they are central to making globalization work for working people.

An Essential Element Of Fair Trade And Sustainable Development In The Ftaa Is An Enforceable Social Clause, Terry Collingsworth

Richmond Journal of Global Law & Business

Multinational companies (“MNCs”) and governments that are fantasizing about a Free Trade Area of the Americas (“FTAA”) should accept the reality that the FTAA is not politically viable for the time being unless the issues of labor rights and other social conditions are addressed in a manner demonstrating that these rights are consistent with commercial rights that are protected in careful detail in many pages of the draft FTAA agreement.

Mapping The Landscape: Perspectives On The Implementation Of Free Trade Agreements, F. Amanda Debusk

Richmond Journal of Global Law & Business

No abstract provided.

Legitimacy, Globally: The Incoherence Of Free Trade Practice, Global Economics And Their Governing Principles Of Political Economy, Michael Henry Davis, Dana Neacsu

Law Faculty Articles and Essays

In this article, we observe the legalized character of the phenomenon popularly called “globalization.” We first examine what it means to be a legalized phenomenon and observe that an important part of legalization is legitimation. In domestic legal regimes, legitimation is accomplished through the Rule of Law, which makes certain claims about the nature of the society of which the legal regime is a part. Simply stated, the Rule of Law claims that a legal system is legitimate if its rules are definite and predictable and are applied in a general, impartial, and non-retroactive manner. In the international trading system …

How Free Trade Can Save The Everglades, Aaron Schwabach

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

The Wto And The Rights Of The Individual, Steve Charnovitz

GW Law Faculty Publications & Other Works

The Marrakesh Agreement Establishing the World Trade Organization (WTO) is silent regarding its relationship to the individual. One might presume that an international organization set up to emancipate trade could have no purpose other than upholding trading rights of private actors. But the WTO was not established to achieve "free trade". That goal is absent from the Marrakesh Agreement. Instead, the goals of the Agreement are "reciprocal and mutually advantageous arrangements directed to the substantial reduction of tariffs and other barriers to trade" and the "elimination of discriminatory treatment in international trade relations". The term "reciprocal arrangements" makes clear that …

Rethinking Wto Trade Sanctions, Steve Charnovitz

GW Law Faculty Publications & Other Works

The paper presents an outline of the issues and a preliminary appraisal of the use of trade sanctions by the World Trade Organization (WTO) as a means of promoting compliance by parties. The WTO is unique among intergovernmental organizations (IGOs) in using trade sanctions to enforce independent adjudications. Many commentators have suggested using trade sanctions analogously in other IGOs, or alternatively broadening trade rules so that the sanctions can be used for other purposes, such as enforcing basic human rights. The paper examines the advantages and disadvantages of the use of such compliance sanctions by the WTO and concludes that …

Recent Trends And Perspectives For Non-State Actor Participation In World Trade Organization Disputes, Ernesto A. Hernandez-Lopez

Ernesto A. Hernandez

Recent trends in World Trade Organization (WTO) disputes show non-state actors play an increasingly significant role in the resolution of disputes between WTO Members. First, the Appellate Body has interpreted the Right to Seek Information in Article XIII of the Dispute Settlement Understanding (DSU) as permitting non-state actors, particularly non-governmental organizations, to submit amicus curiae briefs in WTO disputes. Second, non-governmental legal counsel has played active roles in recent disputes. Third, private counsel to business interests have played an indirect role in dispute settlement, by assisting in formulation of legal strategy in WTO disputes.

Because the WTO is reviewing the …

Trade In Electronic Commerce Services Under The Wto: The Need To Clearly Classify Electronic Transmissions As Services And Not Tariff-Liable, Ernesto A. Hernandez-Lopez

Ernesto A. Hernandez

Written in 2001, this essay asks: should the World Trade Organization (WTO) classify electronic transmissions as a service, and thus tariff-free under the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS), or should the WTO classify electronic transmissions as a good, and thus subject to tariffs under the General Agreement on Trade (GATT)?

First, for the sake of legal certainty, the WTO should take the appropriate steps to definitively classify electronic transmissions as a service and classify them as not tariff liable. Not tariff liable means a good is not subject to custom duties. Electronic transmission refers to "digitalized information transmitted …

Trade In Electronic Commerce Services Under The Wto: The Need To Clearly Classify Electronic Transmissions As Services And Not Tariff-Liable, Ernesto A. Hernandez-Lopez

Ernesto A. Hernandez

Written in 2001, this essay asks: should the World Trade Organization (WTO) classify electronic transmissions as a service, and thus tariff-free under the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS), or should the WTO classify electronic transmissions as a good, and thus subject to tariffs under the General Agreement on Trade (GATT)?

First, for the sake of legal certainty, the WTO should take the appropriate steps to definitively classify electronic transmissions as a service and classify them as not tariff liable. Not tariff liable means a good is not subject to custom duties. Electronic transmission refers to "digitalized information transmitted …

Beyond Eco-Imperialism: An Environmental Justice Critique Of Free Trade, Carmen G. Gonzalez

Carmen G. Gonzalez

The article contributes to the trade and environment literature by assessing the claim that industrialized country proposals to integrate environmental protection into the WTO trade regime constitute environmental imperialism - the imposition of industrialized country values and preferences on less powerful nations. This claim is usually based on two distinct premises. The first is that environmental protection is a luxury that poor countries can ill afford. The second is that wealthy countries have played a leadership role in the protection of the global environment. The article questions these assumptions. It argues that environmental protection is essential to well-being of the …