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Seals Hearings Day One Part Two

So if the Appellate Body were to complete the analysis and do its own assessment of the EU measure under TBT, what might its concerns be?Some hints come from a few questions from the Division yesterday afternoon.One concern seemed to be whether the EU measure is being effectively
Rob Howse 18 Mar 2014 3 min read

The Seals Hearings, Day I (Part I)

In our YJIL article on the Seals dispute "Permitting Pluralism", Jo Langille and I argued that the TBT Agreement is not designed to apply to measures dealing with intrinsic moral principles of right and wrong; many of its provisions seem to address instrumental risk regulation, and the ordinary
Rob Howse 18 Mar 2014 8 min read

The First Day of the Seals Hearings-Stay Tuned!

Some readers have noticed my tweets during the AB hearing today on Seals.  I wanted to mention that I'll be blogging my blow-by-blow and analysis of the day in a few hours right here-after some needed sleep  The whole afternoon was focused on the issue of whether the
Rob Howse 17 Mar 2014 1 min read

Investment Position at the OECD

From the OECD: Due to the retirement of the incumbent, the OECD seek an individual  for the role of Head, Investment Division within the Directorate of Financial & Administrative Affairs (DAF) reporting to the Director and Deputy Directors and leading a team of 40 lawyers and economists.  In the first
Simon Lester 17 Mar 2014 1 min read

The California Egg Law: What is the Measure?

I'm intrigued by the measure at issue in the California Dormant Commerce Clause case I mentioned the other day. If I understand it correctly, based on the complaint, here's how thing went.  First, the California voters passed a referendum requiring that egg producers in California use
Simon Lester 17 Mar 2014 1 min read

Geographical Indications: When Is There a Trade Barrier?

From a letter written by a group of U.S. Senators: Dear Secretary Vilsack and U.S. Trade Representative Froman: We commend your past work to fight the growing geographical indication (GI) restrictions promoted by the European Union (EU). This trade barrier is of great concern to dairy and other
Simon Lester 13 Mar 2014 1 min read

PPMs in U.S. Courts

From the Washington Post: Americans rely on cheap chicken and eggs, the products of super-sizing livestock operations while squeezing costs. Farmers pack animals into tiny, crowded and dank pens, leaving hens with scarce room to extend their wings, let alone move around. There is a balance to be struck between
Simon Lester 12 Mar 2014 1 min read

Seal Products and the Scope of GATT Article III:4

This is from the U.S. third party submission in EC - Seal Products: 7. ... Article 2.1 of the TBT Agreement requires a two-step analysis: (1) whether the challenged technical regulation creates a detrimental impact on imports of like products; and (2) whether the detrimental impact stems exclusively from
Simon Lester 10 Mar 2014 1 min read

GATT Article XXI and the Ukraine Conflict

This is from Jeff Schott of the Peterson Institute: Consideration should be given to invoking GATT Article XXI, which provides exceptions for national security reasons from rights and obligations under the World Trade Organization (WTO), for example. Invoking this WTO exception would allow across-the-board actions against Russia without prior notification
Simon Lester 10 Mar 2014 1 min read

Trade in Everything: Soap Operas and Porn

From the Washington Post: There is no shortage of problems facing China these days: a terrorist attack that recently left 33 people dead and 143 injured, corruption in government, a worrisome slowdown in economic growth. So when the country’s two highest governing bodies met in Beijing this week, what
Simon Lester 10 Mar 2014 1 min read

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Jamieson Greer on the 30 Year Aberration in U.S. Trade Policy

When he was in Davos last week for the World Economic Forum, U.S. Trade Rep. Jamieson Greer talked a bit about U.S. trade policy history and described a recent period during which, in his view, U.S. trade policy shifted away from tariffs/protectionism and towards free trade.
29 Jan 2026 6 min read

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

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