International Economic Law and Policy Blog

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Simon Lester

ASIL Call for Papers

The ASIL's International Economic Law Interest Group (IEcLIG) has put out its Call for Papers for the 2010 Biennial Interest Group Conference. The theme: INTERNATIONAL ECONOMIC LAW IN A TIME OF CHANGE: REASSESSING LEGAL THEORY, DOCTRINE, METHODOLOGY AND POLICY PRESCRIPTIONS. The conference will be at the University of

Weekend Yuan Developments

As many people have probably heard already, China said over the weekend that it would allow some "flexibility" in the yuan's value. Some key passages from the central bank's announcement: In view of the recent economic situation and financial market developments at home and

Mitchell and Voon on the WTO and Health

From Andrew Mitchell and Tania Voon, Implications of the World Trade Organization in Combating Non-Communicable Diseases, on SSRN. From the abstract: The World Health Organization (WHO) has proposed a number of strategies to combat non-communicable diseases such as cancers, cardiovascular diseases, chronic respiratory diseases, and diabetes, by targeting the risk

Colares on International Monetary Reform

From Juscelino Colares, Global Imbalances and Liquidity-Induced Bubbles: The Need for International Monetary Reform, posted on SSRN. Here's the abstract: Economic analyses vary with respect to the extent to which deregulation contributed to the financial crisis of 2008-2009, but coalesce on one major cause: excessive leverage and risk-taking.

Gus Van Harten on Investment Treaties

From Gus Van Harten, Five Justifications for Investment Treaties: A Critical Discussion, posted on SSRN. Here's the abstract: The article examines five common justifications for the investment treaty system in order to highlight aspects of the system that give cause for concern. First, it examines whether investment treaties

An EU Model BIT?

From a recent EU DG Trade civil society meeting on trade and investment: Jean François Brakeland debriefed on the state of play of the preparatory work conducted by the Commission in order to implement the EU exclusive competence on FDI, as conferred by the Lisbon Treaty. He started his presentation

BP and Investor-State Dispute Settlement (or Lack Thereof)

From Carl Pope, Chairman of the Sierra Club: As we wait for President Obama's speech tonight on the oil catastrophe in the Gulf, it's important to understand that many of the options he has discussed -- from requiring BP to set funds aside in escrow for

Competing IEL Visions of Football/Soccer

From Marcus Cole: To the true football fan, the World Cup itself is part of an ideological struggle between two competing corporate goliaths, the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (“FIFA”) and the Union of European Football Associations (“UEFA”). Even the names of the two organizations are themselves indicative of the

The Clove Cigarettes Panel Request

Indonesia has now requested a panel in the U.S. - Clove Cigarettes (DS406) dispute. The request is here: http://www.worldtradelaw.net/pr/ds406-2(pr).pdf It's not much different from the consultations request, but does add some more specific TBT claims. I don't think

Krugman on Currency Undervaluation and WTO Law

From Paul Krugman: China says that accusing it of subsidizing its exports via its exchange rate policy — and imposing a countervailing duty — would violate WTO rules. Hmm. Before we talk legalese, let’s focus on the essentials. An export subsidy is WTO-illegal. An import tariff is WTO-illegal. A deliberately undervalued