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The Most Interesting Trade Debate You've Probably Never Heard Of

There's a great debate that has been going on slowly and sporadically, over a period of years, about the purpose of trade agreements.  On one side are Don Regan of Michigan Law School and economist Bill Ethier; on the other side are economists Kyle Bagwell and Rob Staiger,
Simon Lester 09 Mar 2015 4 min read

State Subsidy Competition Is Bad

From a new paper by economist Ralph Ossa: U.S. cities, counties, and states spend substantial resources on subsidies trying to attract firms. According to a New York Times database which I describe in detail later on, expenditures for such subsidies range from $33.4 million per year in Nevada
Simon Lester 08 Mar 2015 1 min read

Fifteen Fully Funded PhD Positions in Dispute Resolution in International Law

From the International Max Planck Research School for Successful Dispute Resolution in International Law: Fifteen fully funded PhD positions in International Law, starting in 2015 and 2016, are currently open at the International Max Planck Research School for Successful Dispute Resolution (IMPRS-SDR), a doctoral school established in Heidelberg (Germany) and
Simon Lester 08 Mar 2015 1 min read

Worthwhile Canadian Appellate Decision

For years now, I've been fascinated by Canada's Agreement on Internal Trade (AIT), which has a domestic trade dispute system that looks a lot like the dispute systems in international trade agreements.  I've never been able to generate much excitement from others about the
Simon Lester 05 Mar 2015 3 min read

Is There Anything That Can Be Done About Anti-Dumping?

In my view, there's not enough talk about anti-dumping these days. Most people seem to have accepted the status quo, and all the big mega-regional trade talks just ignore it. So, I'm always happy to see that some people still care about the issue.  This program
Simon Lester 05 Mar 2015 1 min read

Interview With a TPP Critic

Having observed critics of trade agreements for around 20 years now, I've often wondered about their precise views. It's clear they don't like trade agreements, but what exactly do they want to see from the trade regime?  Some of them are almost certainly protectionists,
Simon Lester 03 Mar 2015 10 min read

What if GSP Tariff Preferences Lead to Human Rights Violations?

When I think of GSP conditionality, normally I think of conditions by which the GSP program is designed to change an existing situation in a recipient country (e.g., labor rights violations).  But what if the program itself leads to the problem situation?  From Sara Núñez Évora, this is a
Simon Lester 02 Mar 2015 1 min read

Postdoctoral Fellowships on the Legitimacy of International Courts and Tribunals

From the University of Oslo Faculty of Law: Up to five 3 year postdoctoral fellowships are available at PluriCourts, a Centre for the Study of the Legitimate Roles of the Judiciary in the Global Order, a multidisciplinary Centre of Excellence at the Faculty of Law, Department of Public and International
Simon Lester 02 Mar 2015 1 min read

Do Judges Have To Write Their Opinions Themselves?

From the Kluwer Arbitration blog, there is an interesting challenge going on relating to the role of assistance provided to an international arbitration tribunal: The Russian Federation argues that the arbitrators delegated substantive responsibilities to the Tribunal’s assistant and thus breached their mandate to perform their duties personally. Therefore,
Simon Lester 01 Mar 2015 1 min read

More Plain Packaging Laws

More plain packaging laws: Ireland has became the  second country in the world to pass a law introducing mandatory plain packaging for tobacco products ... and more plain packaging litigation? The move has been met with fierce opposition by tobacco companies who have threatened Dublin with legal action. ... Earlier this month
Simon Lester 01 Mar 2015 1 min read

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International Economic Law and Policy Blog

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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