Simon Lester

Joost raises an important systemic issue in a new paper: This contribution makes an empirical assessment of the role of precedent in WTO dispute settlement. As an imperfect proxy it counts cross-references between the 108 Appellate Body reports issued between 1996 and 2013. Using basic tools of network analysis it

I haven't read any of the submissions or the opinion in the Yukos investment arbitration, which resulted in the biggest award ever -- $50 billion! -- and has been making headlines in the past week. But from the articles about the case, what struck me is that the

This is a synopsis of Professor Michael Trebilcock's recent SIEL lecture (written by Michael): In my recent Robert Hudec public lecture to the Society for International Economic Law at its biannual conference in Bern, Switzerland (“Between Theories of Trade and Development: The Future of the World Trading System,

I'm a little late to the party on the most recent Argentine debt crisis.  I hadn't been paying much attention, but someone asked me to speak about it at a conference in October, so I thought I better try to figure it out!  There are a

Arvind Subramanian has always been one of my favorite trade commentators.  Whatever topic he takes on, he has great insights.  This short piece he wrote on the current WTO trade facilitation/food security issue with India is no exception. He explains how policy changes in recent years have led to

From Gujarat National Law University: Gujarat National Law University, one of India's premiere law schools, is proud to announce the 7th Edition of its flagship event, The GNLU INTERNATIONAL MOOT COURT COMPETITION. (GIMC 2015) GIMC is one of the very few moot court competitions in the world where

This is from Robert Basedow, a PhD candidate at LSE: ... It is helpful to distinguish between the substantive and procedural provisions under typical international investment agreements. The substantive provisions enumerate the rights of investors and states under these agreements, whereas the procedural provisions regulate how substantive provisions can be enforced.

In the U.S. first written submission in the Article 21.5 WTO panel proceeding in U.S. - Tuna II, the U.S. distinguishes Tuna from Seals in regard to non-discrimination.  Here's the GATT MFN section: 287. The facts here are in contrast to the ones in

In the negotiations: India blocked an agreement on new global customs rules on Thursday, angering fellow members of the World Trade Organization who say Delhi's veto could be costly, economically and politically. At a meeting in Geneva, diplomats from the 160 WTO member countries were supposed to rubber

From an interview in the New Republic: DV: Another thing you talked about in the FT op-ed was the Trans Pacific Partnership, the trade deal. One component of the deal is to bring down tariffs between all countries involved, but tariffs are already very low between these countries, particularly with