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Joel Trachtman

Joel P. Trachtman is Professor Emeritus of International Law at The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University, where he has taught since 1989.

Sausage

The NYT has an interesting op-ed today regarding developments in congressional antics regarding GSP, Trade Adjustment Assistance, Andean Preferences, and the Colombia-US FTA. I won't try to replicate its description of the linkages among these, which remind us of Bismarck's observation that there are

Applicability of the NAFTA "Prudential Carveout" to Capital Controls

I wonder if readers would agree with the following preliminary analysis of whether the NAFTA "prudential carveout" applies to except capital controls from the provisions regarding free transfer of investments. Capital controls for limited purposes are becoming more popular among economists, including those at the IMF. First, using

What John Bolton Doesn't Know about International Law

. . . could fill an international law library. See his statement against "pooling sovereignty" in the Washington Examiner (is that a newspaper?). This seems to be a general position against all international law, including presumably trade, investment, IP, etc. To add insult to ignorance, he refers to President Obama as

Stuxnet and Trade

Cybersecurity is looming ever larger as a concern of governments and businesses, not to mention individuals. The recent revelations regarding worm attacks on industrial installations, including perhaps Iranian nuclear processing plants, have heightened concern. Today's New York Times has a story about India's requirements imposed on

Extraterritoriality Conference

Beyond Borders: Extraterritoriality in American Law Southwestern Law School, Nov. 12, 2010 On Friday, November 12, 2010, Southwestern Law School in Los Angeles, California is hosting a symposium titled Beyond Borders: Extraterritoriality in American Law. This one-day symposium will bring together leading legal figures from throughout the country to

When Cooperation Fails . . .

An Online Book Discussion ("When Cooperation Fails") On Tuesday, January 5, 2010, Opinio Juris (http://opiniojuris.org/) will hold an online discussion of Mark Pollack and Gregory Shaffer's new book, When Cooperation Fails: The International Law and Politics of Genetically Modified Foods (Oxford, 2009). Should be

War, What is it Good For?

(With apologies to Edwin Starr.) Today's FT has an editorial expressing fear that border taxes in relation to carbon content, if implemented by jurisdictions like the U.S. and E.U., would start a trade war. The FT thinks it's dangerous and dumb to risk trade

International Law of Economic Migration

My new book on The International Law of Economic Migration has just been published by the Upjohn Institute. For more information, see http://www.upjohninst.org/publications/titles/ilem.html Here is the short description: The gains from total trade liberalization, according to a recent World Bank study, are estimated

Philippine Pharma Price Prohibitions on Patented Potions

Todays' WSJ reports that "President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo imposed price controls on several branded drugs when their manufacturers failed to comply with a new law designed to lower retail prices." On a quick review, I don't see anything in TRIPS that would restrict the ability

G-20 on the Bicycle

This from today's WSJ: The leaders embraced a renewed effort to unblock global trade talks and promised they will refrain from using commercial barriers to protect their own industries for the next 12 months. "We agreed on the importance of rejecting protectionism," Mr. Brown said. "