Simon Lester

The WTO panel report in India - Solar Cells, circulated last week, triggered some thoughts about green industrial policy, by which I mean government actions to help push us towards the use of cleaner energy. I'm skeptical of all industrial policy, and therefore I'm also skeptical

From today's India - Solar Cells WTO panel report: 7.202. We note at the outset that the general exception contained in Article XX(j) has never been invoked as a defence before a GATT/WTO dispute settlement panel. Article 3.2 of the DSU directs us to

There's an interesting exchange on ISDS/ICS between MEP Bernd Lange and EU Trade Commission Cecilia Malmstrom (the latter is a subscriber-only Inside US Trade document).  I was particularly interested in Commissioner Malmstrom's explanation of the new "right to regulate" provision (discussed here and

Inside US Trade reports on the state of regulatory issues in the TTIP: The European Commission has decided to hold off on tabling a revised text on regulator-to-regulator cooperation at the 12th round of Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) talks this week, and likely will not come forward with

From remarks by President Obama yesterday: With respect to tobacco, we said very explicitly in this trade deal that any country that regulates tobacco is not somehow violating trade agreements as long as it’s done fairly, as long as they’re not discriminating against American tobacco companies versus their

From the National Interest Analysis of the TPP undertaken by Australia: 5. Australia will also lodge a notification, expressly permitted under Article 29.5, electing to prevent any and all Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) challenges to Australia’s tobacco control measures under the TPP. No word on whether Australia thinks

From PluriCourts: A position as professor (or associate professor) in International Economic Law is announced at PluriCourts. The application deadline is 1 April. Job Description A position as professor (or associate professor) is announced at PluriCourts, a Centre for the Study of the Legitimate Roles of the Judiciary in the

CFR Senior Fellow, and former USTR official, Tom Bollyky makes the case for the tobacco carveout from ISDS in the TPP. Here's an excerpt, but read the whole thing: The Obama Administration has done itself a disservice by not making the basis for the tobacco carve-out clearer. It

A couple days ago, I briefly expressed skepticism about the economic estimates being offered up related to the TPP (see also here). Working independently, but with similar ideological priors, here's my Cato colleague Dan Ikenson offering more detailed thoughts: With apologies to my trade economist friends, anyone who

This is from economist, and trade skeptic (to some extent), Dani Rodrik: The bottom line is that neither side’s models generate numbers reliable enough on which a case for or against the TPP can be made. I'm a lot more pro-trade than Dani Rodrik is, but I