Here's a brief rundown of what's going on in the China - Rare Earths dispute, which involves three separate complaints -- DS431 (US); DS432 (EU); and DS433 (Japan) -- that were merged into one panel proceeding, and resulted in three panel reports circulated in a single

From the University of Aberdeen: Technology has a key role in addressing the contemporary challenges of society, from health to communications to energy. These are global issues, given the location of key natural resources in developing countries, and the nature of the markets for health, communication and energy.  Development and

Those interested in regulatory convergence issues in TTIP might like to know about a newly published study commissioned by the European Parliament: Alberto Alemanno, 'The Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership and the parliamentary dimension of regulatory cooperation'. It is available here: /content/files/RegData/etudes/etudes/join/2014/

In a likely response to the U.S.-led “Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP),” China mulls the formation of an “Asia-Pacific Free Trade Agreement (FTAAP).”  China’s assistant commerce minister, Wang Shouwen, reportedly stated that a working group might be established to discuss the feasibility of the FTAAP.  Wang was quoted to

As this blog's readers are well aware, I've taken an interest in international investment law in the past few years, and am skeptical of the existing system. My Cato colleague Dan Ikenson has doubts as well.  But beyond our specific criticisms, we would really like to

This is from Roger Alford at Opinio Juris: despite the assumption that international trade disputes must be resolved before the WTO DSB, the existence of broad umbrella clauses in BITs present a promising vehicle for enforcing investment commitments in trade agreements. ... umbrella clauses in BITs could create a private right

From the The Canadian Council on International Law: Combustion: Energy, Resources and Environmental Issues Igniting International Law November 13-15, 2014 - Ottawa, Ontario The Canadian Council on International Law is pleased to announce its 43rd Annual Conference: "Combustion: Energy, Resources, and Environmental Issues Igniting International Law". Practitioners and

My apologies if the title of this post ever disappoints sci-fi fans, but certain cashmere yarns from all over the world have now had an opportunity to trek to South Korea, and eventually to the United States. A number of regional trading agreements (RTAs) contain the “yarn-forwarding” rule.  This rule

Canada's latest move has been to attack the singer Morrissey, claiming that he compared the seal hunt to Auschwitz.  However, what Mr. Morrissey actually said was different.  He merely used the example of concentration camps to illustrate the moral argument that if something is intrinsically evil the fact

An article appearing in Sun New service by Jessica Hume gives a very misleading impression of the Seals case.  http://bit.ly/1rmpx15  The article appears in the guise of an interview with Geneva-based attorney and former Canadian official Brendan McGivern.  Of course, I don't know what Brendan