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Free Trade under the Canadian Constitution

Just recently, I wondered why Canada needs an Agreement on Internal Trade.  Doesn't, or at least shouldn't, its constitution provide for internal free trade?  Well, it appears that someone has decided to push this issue in Canadian courts: A man whose drive from New Brunswick to
Simon Lester 26 Jul 2015 1 min read

UNSW Post-Doc Fellowship

This is from the University of New South Wales (UNSW): The CIBEL (China International Business and Economic Law) Post-Doctoral Research Fellowship is an opportunity for early career researchers of exceptional calibre who have completed their doctorate (PhD or SJD) in the last five years to undertake research in a CIBEL
Simon Lester 26 Jul 2015 1 min read

Computer software, video game consoles, printer ink cartridges, GPS devices, MRI machines and next generation semiconductors

These are some of new information technology (IT) products covered by the newly struck expanded version of the WTO IT Agreement.  This is what the WTO head said:  “Annual trade in these 201 products is valued at over $1.3 trillion per year, and accounts for approximately 7% of total
Sungjoon Cho 24 Jul 2015 1 min read

COOL Down Under

Australia will have mandatory country of origin labelling for food soon: Australia will introduce mandatory country-of-origin food labeling from 2016, Prime Minister Tony Abbott said on Tuesday, a move given impetus by a hepatitis outbreak earlier in the year blamed on contaminated berries from China. Under the new rules, food
Simon Lester 22 Jul 2015 1 min read

The "Right to Regulate"

It should be obvious to long-time readers that I am concerned about policy space and regulatory autonomy under trade and investment agreements.  However, I have doubts that the "right to regulate" is a good way to describe the issue: Talk of "rights" can be unproductive when
Simon Lester 21 Jul 2015 1 min read

Person to Government Dispute Settlement in Canada

This is from Canada's Premiers (a group made up of Canada’s 13 provincial and territorial Premiers.) Premiers also announced the coming into force of an improved Person-to-Government dispute settlement process under the Agreement on Internal Trade (AIT). The new dispute process includes the introduction of monetary penalties
Simon Lester 21 Jul 2015 1 min read

Trade Polling: Americans Don't Think Trade Matters Much

Based on some recent polling, neither Americans in general, nor various scholars, think the TPP or TTIP matters much, at least to them personally: and:
Simon Lester 20 Jul 2015 1 min read

GATT Article XX: The Chapeau vs. the Sub-Paragraphs

This is from Lorand Bartels, in the latest AJIL: The Chapeau of the General Exceptions in the WTO GATT and GATS Agreements: A Reconstruction ... Conclusions This article argues that the Appellate Body has misunderstood the chapeau and that, in particular, there is no analytic, structural, or even thematic difference between
Simon Lester 20 Jul 2015 1 min read

Water Pricing and Subsidies

Let's say California is experiencing a serious drought. And let's say companies are bottling and selling municipal water from California. And let's say that the price set by the government for the purchase of this water is low enough that it contributes to consumption
Simon Lester 17 Jul 2015 1 min read

Tie Votes at the ITC and WTO

This is from Inside US Trade: In Tie Vote, ITC Find U.S. Producers Are Injured By Chinese Tire Imports In a victory for the United Steelworkers (USW) union, the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) on Tuesday (July 14) issued a final determination that domestic tire producers are being
Simon Lester 17 Jul 2015 1 min read

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International Economic Law and Policy Blog

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Is this the end of MFN as we know it? The EU submission on WTO reform and the meaning of development

With the release of the EU submission on WTO reform, it has become clear that the MFN principle’s central role within the WTO architecture is under challenge. As a keystone, it risks the entire bridge falling. Even if the foundations are retained but deemed outdated or unusable, and a
23 Jan 2026 3 min read

Can "Geopolitical" Tariffs Be Dealt With through Trade Deals?

Last Friday, U.S. Trade Rep. Jamieson Greer was asked about Trump's initial suggestion of tariffs related to the goal of taking over Greenland
20 Jan 2026 4 min read

Is Foreign Antitrust Enforcement "Discriminatory" and "Anti-American"?

The House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Administrative State, Regulatory Reform, and Antitrust held a hearing in December on "Anti-American Antitrust: How Foreign Governments Target U.S. Businesses." There was a lot of talk at the hearing about how foreign regulations and regulators "discriminate" against American companies.
05 Jan 2026 5 min read

Pennsylvania Court Finds Mexican Government Guilty of "Discrimination" Due To Its Subsidies

I'm always interested in how courts apply the concept of "discrimination" in the context of international trade, so I've been eagerly awaiting a Pennsylvania court decision in a case against Mexico.
12 Dec 2025 8 min read

Economic Security in Trade Agreements: My Response to Geoff Gertz

Thanks to Geoff for laying out his vision of why economic security should be in trade agreements and how to bring it in. It won't surprise anyone to hear I have some additional comments and questions in response!
04 Dec 2025 10 min read

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