This is from the Agreed Procedures under Articles 21 and 22 of the Dispute Settlement Understanding between Indonesia and Viet Nam in the Indonesia – Safeguard on Certain Iron or Steel Products (DS496) dispute:
7. The parties agree that if, on the date of the circulation of the panel report under Article 21.5 of the DSU, the Appellate Body is composed of fewer than three Members available to serve on a division in an appeal in these proceedings, they will not appeal that report under Articles 16.4 and 17 of the DSU.
The parties agree that the panel report will be the final word in the case, which means the case cannot be sent into limbo if someone appeals to a non-existent Appellate Body.
This kind of agreement between parties to a dispute is one way that WTO dispute settlement can continue to function if the Appellate Body crisis is not resolved. It will be interesting to see how quickly the idea spreads.
