Paul Blustein, the author of "Misadventures of the Most Favored Nations", comes back with another tale of "Misadventures of the Most Powerful Nations". It provides not only important insights on some of the most important systemic issues facing the WTO, but also a peek into the

Thanks to Henry for pointing us to China's opening statement at the European Union – Measures Related to Price Comparison Methodologies (DS516) panel meeting. Following up on the discussion in the comments on Henry's post, China is clearly taking this dispute very seriously, and says the following

This is from the EU's first written submission in the European Union — Measures Related to Price Comparison Methodologies (DS516) case (footnotes omitted): 8. STANDARD OF REVIEW: PERMISSIBLE INTERPRETATION 275. The European Union submits that the special standard of review in Article 17(6)(ii) of the Anti-Dumping Agreement

This is from the Washington Post: Policy analysts at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta were told of the list of forbidden words at a meeting Thursday with senior CDC officials who oversee the budget, according to an analyst who took part in the 90-minute briefing. The

There are no WTO definitions of “developed” and “developing” countries. Members announce for themselves (the so-called “self-election” principle) whether they are “developed” or “developing” countries. This is considered as a consequence of the  principle of sovereignty which includes the right of states to proclaim that they are developing countries and

In a rare move, China published part of the opening statement in a WTO dispute: the EU - Price Comparison Methodologies case. The statement refers extensively to the negotiating history of Section 15 of China's Accession Protocol, and even included video clips and statements by then-USTR Barshefsky, US

While a glum consensus has formed that nothing much happened at the WTO MC11 Ministerial Conference, a hardly-noticed announcement on the sidelines of the MC11 Ministerial Conference may have constitutional even transformative implications for the WTO.  Yesterday (Tuesday), together with Alibaba's Jack Ma, and the World Economic Forum,

As described in a previous post, the UNCITRAL mandate on the possible reform of investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS) requires states to first identify and consider concerns regarding ISDS before going on to consider and develop any relevant reforms. Although states in the November 2017 session did not debate potential reforms,

In late November 2017, states from around the world convened in Working Group III at UNCITRAL in Vienna to begin debates about the possible reform of investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS). In accordance with the UNCITRAL mandate (see  Annotated Provisional Agenda) that was given in July 2017: The Working Group would