International Trade Law Commons^™

Article Iii And Supranational Judicial Review, Henry Paul Monaghan

Faculty Scholarship

With the rise of supranational legislative bodies, the use of supranational adjudicatory bodies has also increased. These adjudicatory bodies have even been allowed to review the domestic law decisions offederal administrative agencies, and their decisions are insulated from any review by Article III courts. These developments have been met by intense opposition. This Article addresses the question whether, as claimed by several writers, the emerging supranational adjudicatory order impermissibly contravenes the "essential attributes of the judicial power established by Article III." Examining two case studies, the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and the Supreme Court's recent decisions regarding Article …

Choice Of Jurisdiction In International Trade Disputes: Going Regional Or Global?, Rafael Leal-Arcas

ExpressO

This article is a legal and policy analysis of two international trade disputes fora, namely the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and the World Trade Organization (WTO), for countries that have standing in both jurisdictions, i.e., the United Mexican States, the United States of America, and Canada. Both fora are judicially compared from the perspective of the respondent and of the complainant, analyzing the advantages and disadvantages of each forum. The chosen time-frame of judicial analysis is between 1995 and 2001. The article concludes with two cases which may have been brought in either forum, Broomcorn and Canada – …

Comparative Advantage And Labor Protections In Free Trade Agreements: Making Labor Protections In Trade Agreements Practical And Effective, Michael E. Aleo

ExpressO

The tension between competitiveness in international trade and the improvement of living standards has become a central controversy in negotiating trade agreements. Under pressure from the labor rights movement over the course of the last twenty-five years, the United States has regularly advocated for the inclusion of labor standards in trade relationships. Generally, governments in developing countries resist the incorporation of labor protections in trade agreements because of a belief that labor protections diminish a nation’s competitiveness in the international marketplace. Labor rights advocates, particularly in the United States, have fought for the inclusion of labor rights in trade agreements …

Canadian Softwood Lumber And “Free Trade” Under Nafta, Sydney M. Cone Iii

NYLS Law Review

No abstract provided.

Investor-State Dispute Settlement Between Developed Countries, William S. Dodge

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

Free trade agreements between developed countries now frequently contain provisions on investor protection, but the resolution of disputes remains problematic. Chapter 11 of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) allows investors to bring direct claims against a host state before an international tribunal without exhausting domestic remedies. This has resulted in a number of claims against the United States by Canadian investors and against Canada by U.S.investors. Chapter 11 of the Australia-United States Free Trade Agreement (AUSFTA) does not permit direct claims, relying instead on a state-to-state dispute resolution mechanism.

This Article reviews the evolution of investment-dispute resolution from …

An Appellate Mechanism For Review Of Arbitral Decisions In Investor-State Disputes, David A. Gantz

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

At a time when complaints and decisions in investor-state arbitration are proliferating as never before, concerns are being raised by the U.S. Congress, NGOs and some foreign governments over the lack of consistency (or serious errors) among the decisions that emanate from the largely ad hoc arbitral panels that are created under the provisions of bilateral investment treaties and the investment provisions of free trade agreements, such as NAFTA, Chapter 11. As a result, it is suggested that an appellate mechanism, perhaps patterned after the generally successful Appellate Body of the World Trade Organization, be created, possibly under the auspices …

An Evaluation Of Current Legitimacy-Based Objections To Nafta's Chapter 11 Investment Dispute Resolution Process, Naveen Gurudevan

San Diego International Law Journal

The year 1994 saw the conclusion of a very important trilateral trade and investment treaty in North America: the North American Free Trade Agreement. Since then, this agreement has had a tremendous impact on the trading relations among the three signatory states-the United States, Canada, and Mexico. Of particular significance is Chapter 11, the Investment Chapter. One of the main objectives of Chapter 11 is to provide an effective means for the resolution of disputes between a foreign investor and the host government. To this end, it provides a mechanism whereby private parties can initiate arbitration proceedings against the host …

The Next Privatization Of Public Assets: Domestic And Trade Implication Related To Water Right And Land Acquisition, Jennifer C. Gerbasi

Sustainable Development Law & Policy

No abstract provided.

Meaning, Ambiguity And Legitimacy: Judicial (Re-)Construction Of Nafta Chapter 11, Ari Afilalo

Northwestern Journal of International Law & Business

Chapter 11 of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) benignly named the "Investment Chapter," is a theater for some of the most advanced issues of 21st century international law and adjudication. The Chapter gives private parties the right to challenge national policies that burden their ability to do business freely. It empowers arbitral tribunals to assess damages against the governments of NAFTA parties. The adjudicators, as this Article illustrates, render opinions with a constitutional flavor in that they assess the validity of domestic norms against larger principles of international economic law. In a drastic move away from classical century …

Facing Arbitration For Environmental Regulation: Arbitration Under Chapter 11 Of The North American Free Trade Agreement Between Methanex Corporation And The United States Of America , Rekha Rao

Sustainable Development Law & Policy

No abstract provided.

Between Dialogue And Decree: International Review Of National Courts, Robert B. Ahdieh

Faculty Scholarship

Recent years have seen dramatic growth in the number of international tribunals at work across the globe, from the Appellate Body of the World Trade Organization and the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea, to the Claims Resolution Tribunal for Dormant Claims in Switzerland and the International Criminal Court. With this development has come both increased opportunity for interaction between national and international courts and increased occasion for conflict. Such friction was evident in the recent decision in Loewen Group, Inc. v. United States, in which an arbitral panel constituted under the North American Free Trade Agreement found …

Beggar-Thy-Neighbor? Why The Wto Appellate Body’S Enforcement Of A Rigorous “Parallelism Requirement” Limits The Exemption Of Regional Trade Agreement Partners From The Application Of Safeguard Measures, Jordan Taylor

ExpressO

The recent WTO Appellate Body decision in U.S. – Steel Safeguards provided a new wrinkle in the AB’s treatment of Regional Trade Agreement members who seek to exempt each other from the application of safeguard measures. Previously, the AB had supported a rigorous “parallelism requirement” compelling Members to equate the scope of the countries investigated with the scope of the countries upon which the safeguard measures would be applied before it would consider whether Article XXIV provided an affirmative defense permitting the exclusion of RTA partners from the application of such measures. Where there was an impermissible “gap” as between …

Un Enfoque Comparativo Sobre La Formacion De Los Contratos Electronicos, Roberto Rosas

Faculty Articles

Understanding the basic principles governing the formation of contracts is of paramount importance when it comes to figuring out the most appropriate to enter into a new contract or to assess the legality of a contract existing ones. While the basic rules for the forming of general contracts are applicable to most type of contracts, regardless of how they are done, there are some legal rules that apply specify to contracts concluded electronically.

Interview Of The Honorable William Frenzel Conducted By A. Jane Bradley On August 25, 2003, Institute Of International Economic Law, Georgetown University Law Center

The Oral History Project of the World Trading System

Interview of the Honorable William "Bill" E. Frenzel, Former U.S. Congressman (R-MN), conducted by A. Jane Bradley on August 25, 2003.

A Lesson From Nafta: Can The Ftaa Function As A Tool For Improvement In The Lives Of Working Women, Hannah L. Meils

Indiana Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Las Marcas En El Tratado De Libre Comercio De America Del Norte, Roberto Rosas

Faculty Articles

In this essay, the author analyzes the regulation of trademarks in the NAFTA and its influence on Mexico's legislation on that matter. In the first part, the author explains in general terms the content of the NAFTA, and afterwards, he refers to the rules of Chapter XVII on industrial property. Moreover, he explains the protection derived from this agreement in connection with trademarks, and later, he refers to the normative framework of trademarks in Mexico, which is a result both of legislation and international treaties. Finally, he makes a comparison between Spanish Law on Trademarks of 2001, the rules of …

Nafta's Investment Chapter: Initial Thoughts About Second-Generation Rights, Charles H. Brower

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

In this Article Professor Brower argues that most observers of NAFTA's investment chapter have missed an important and surprising development: Although the treaty's text shares a philosophical affinity with civil and political rights, its application has revealed an astonishing level of support for economic and social rights (ESCRs) in North America. Professor Brower examines the practical implications of this development both for the presentation of claims in investor-state arbitration and for the better integration of ESCRs into the mainstream of international law.

Free Movement Of Goods: A Comparative Analysis Of The European Community Treaty And The North American Free Trade Agreement, Pedro A. Perichart

LLM Theses and Essays

The European Union is currently an economic union, which means that it has almost removed every internal barrier to trade, therefore achieving the free circulation of all factors of production (goods, services, capital, and persons) across the union. The North America Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) establishes a free trade area, with the main purpose of eliminating tariffs among its members, and to some extent, reducing other non-tariff barriers to facilitate the cross-border movement of goods. Despite their difference, both regions seek to achieve a certain degree of free movement when trading goods within their respective e internal markets. This study …

Workers’ Rights: A Winding Road In The Trucking Dispute Between The United States And Mexico, Michael S. Plotkin

Richmond Journal of Global Law & Business

No abstract provided.

The Geography Of Injustice: Borders And The Continuing Immiseration Of California Agricultural Labor In Era Of "Free Trade", Don M. Mitchell

Richmond Journal of Global Law & Business

Why is it that when the reigning ideology governing the expansion of “free trade” is anti-regulatory”, all agree that the movement of people, or rather laborers, must be carefully regulated? Indeed, why are borders strengthened for people just as states of the Western Hemisphere embark on a thorough reconfiguration, and even a dismantling, or borders for capital and goods.

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

Richmond Journal of Global Law & Business

No abstract provided.

Does Free Trade Cause Hunger? Hidden Implications Of The Ftaa, Jonathan B. Wight

Richmond Journal of Global Law & Business

This division of labour, from which so many advantages are derived, is not originally the effects of any human wisdom, which forsees and intends that general opulence to which it gives occasion. It is the necessary, though very slow and gradual consequence of a certain propensity in human nature which has in view no such extensive utility; the propensity to truck, barter, and exchange one thing for another.

Constitutional Change And International Government, Chantal Thomas

Cornell Law Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Shedding Light On Article 1110 Of The North American Free Trade Agreement(Nafta)Concerning Expropriations: An Environmental Case Study, Jason L. Gudofsky

Northwestern Journal of International Law & Business

By focusing on the provision of Chapter 11 that has elicited the most fervent debate, namely Article 1110 concerning expropriations, this paper attempts to pick through the verbiage regarding, and shed light on, the meaning of Article 1110. To illustrate the discussion, the acquisition of MacMillan Bloedel Limited ("MB"), the then largest forest company in Canada, by Weyerhaeuser Company ("Weyerhaeuser") on November 1, 1999 to create a major global forest company (the "MB Acquisition") is examined.

Trade In Technology Within The Free Trade Zone: The Impact Of The Wto Agreement, Nafta, And Tax Treaties On The Nafta Signatories, Catherine Brown, Christine Manolakas

Northwestern Journal of International Law & Business

Trade in technology and related services has assumed a major role both on the world trade agenda and within the NAFTA block. The success of such cross-border trade is dependent upon three factors: protection of intellectual property,' access to foreign markets by service providers, and a minimized risk of double taxation. Each of these factors is impacted by national laws, multinational conventions, and bilateral tax treaties. The last decade has witnessed an explosion of such legislation and agreements. This article focuses on Canada, Mexico and the United States, and explores the World Trade Organization Agreement ("WTO Agreement"), the North American …

The Nafta Package And The Environment: A Green Analysis Of Its Origins And Effects, Pedro M. Morales-Gomez

LLM Theses and Essays

When the presidential candidate Clinton announced that he would not support NAFTA without environmental and labor side agreements, and during the period before NAFTA's ratification by the American Congress, Mexicans lived in most tense suspense. Even though, the idea of an environmental side agreement seemed to please most environmentalists in Mexico who hoped that this would lead to creating a major environmental conscience in the Mexican government. The purpose of this thesis is to elaborate a critical analysis of the North American Free Trade Agreement, its related documents and their effects concerning the environment, specifically its legal protection. We will …

To The Yukon And Beyond: Local Laborers In A Global Market, Katherine V.W. Stone

Cornell Law Faculty Publications

This Article explores the possibilities for effective protection of labor rights in the emerging global labor market. It explores existing forms of transnational labor regulation, including both hard regulation, i.e., regulation by state-centered institutions, and soft regulation, i.e., regulation through private actors responding to market forces. The author finds that existing regulatory approaches are inadequate to ensure that the global marketplace will offer adequate labor standards to its global workforce. She proposes new approaches to global labor regulation, approaches that blend hard and soft law by reshaping market forces and embedding them in a regulatory framework that is protective of …

Is Nafta Up To Its Green Expectations? Effective Law Enforcement Under The North American Agreement On Environmental Cooperation, Beatriz Bugeda

University of Richmond Law Review

On January 1, 1994, the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) between the governments of Mexico, Canada and the United States went into effect. Together with this trade agreement, the governments of the three countries entered into a side agreement on the environment: the North American Agreement on Environmental Cooperation (NAAEC). This agreement, also known as the Environmental Side Agreement, responded to some of the concerns of NAFTA critics. Some environmentalists believed NAFTA would promote environmentally insensitive and uncontrolled growth, and others thought the liberalization of trade would be used as a means to preempt stringent domestic environmental regulations.

Cross-Border Bank Branching Under The Nafta: Public Choice And The Law Of Corporate Groups, Eric J. Gouvin

Faculty Scholarship

This Article examines a question left unresolved after the negotiation of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA): whether the banks of the member countries should be permitted to engage in the business of banking in the other member countries simply by branching across national borders. Under present law, the United States permits branching subject to extensive restrictions, while Canada and Mexico permit access to their banking markets only by acquisition or establishment of institutions chartered in their countries. While the NAFTA does not provide for unfettered branching across national borders, article 1403(3) of the NAFTA left the issue of …

The North American Agreement Of Labor Cooperation And Its Effects On Women Working In Mexican Maquiladoras , Nicole L. Grimm

American University Law Review

No abstract provided.