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Can the European Commission Save Investor State from its Critics?

From a document just released by the European Commission, entitled "A new start for investment and investment protection": 4. What is the EU doing to improve investment protection rules? The Commission’s aim is to bring improvements on two fronts (1) to clarify and improve investment protection rules
Simon Lester 27 Nov 2013 2 min read

Scapegoating India for the Impasse in WTO Talks (and Denying the Real Causes)

A story from Reuters http://reut.rs/1a0As7m has been circulating in the last hours that the blame for the collapse of the WTO talks is almost entirely India's. The theory is that the "electioneering" of the Indian government has led it to reject the peace
Rob Howse 27 Nov 2013 3 min read

GATT Article III:4: Is Disparate Impact Enough?

Here is the entirety of the WTO Seal Products panel's GATT Article III:4 analysis: 7.4.3.2 Analysis by the Panel 7.604. Article III:4 of the GATT 1994 provides that: The products of the territory of any Member imported into the territory of any
Simon Lester 25 Nov 2013 2 min read

The Seal Panel Report: TBT Article 2.1 v. Article 2.2

The panel report on the seal case is out. http://www.wto.org/english/news_e/news13_e/400_401r_e.htm  Obviously, there is a lot to digest there. Let me raise just one issue. The panel ruled that the EC Seal Regime was justifiable (necessary) under TBT Article
Sungjoon Cho 25 Nov 2013 1 min read

How to Bury the Peace Clause-and Resurrect Bali

I am inclined to the view that failure at Bali may be just what is needed to get the WTO to make a fresh start, creating an agenda that corresponds to the needs of this century not the last.  At the same time, I've been impressed by the
Rob Howse 23 Nov 2013 3 min read

The Peace Clause a Trojan Horse

Among the reaons, and there are many, why India is among the world's great democracies, is the quality and political responsibility of its journalists. An article just published in an Indian newspaper explores brilliantly how the peace clause to which India seems to have acquiesced-but already apparently with
Rob Howse 21 Nov 2013 1 min read

Law and Politics at the WTO:India turns the tables on food security opponents

The saga of the G33 food security proposal in the WTO negotiations is a fascinating tale of law and politics. India has been a leader of this proposal, which would be a good start in bringing WTO norms more fully into alignment with the right to food in international law.
Rob Howse 21 Nov 2013 2 min read

Fire-Resistant Furniture and the TBT Agreement

The Peter Van den Bossche/Werner Zdouc WTO law textbook says this: A requirement that imported furniture is fire-resistant, while no such requirement exists for domestically produced furniture, would constitute a violation of the national treatment obligation set out in Article 2.1 of the TBT Agreement. That's
Simon Lester 18 Nov 2013 1 min read

The Tea Party and Trade

Some recent news headlines about the tea party and trade: "Hill tea party’s next target: Barack Obama’s trade agenda" "Tea Party Joins Liberals in Push Against Fast-Tracked Trade" An excerpt: Tea party Republicans insist they’re in favor of free trade. They just don’
Simon Lester 18 Nov 2013 2 min read

The Secret TPP IP Chapter Is No Longer Secret

Thanks to WikiLeaks:  http://wikileaks.org/tpp/  (Also thanks to whoever gave it to WikiLeaks.) So what's in it?  Way too much to discuss quickly, especially since I just returned last night from a conference over in Prague.  But any of you IP experts out there should feel
Simon Lester 14 Nov 2013 1 min read

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International Economic Law and Policy Blog

International Economic Law and Policy Blog

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Tracking Goods Exports under the Trump Administration's Trade Policies

My sense is that one of the reasons some traditionally pro-trade members of Congress have continued to support Trump's trade policies, despite misgivings they may have about tariffs, is because they hope these policies will pry open foreign markets, leading to increased US exports.
07 May 2026 8 min read

Could Congress Extend the USMCA for Another Term?

People have been assuming that the decision on whether to extend the USMCA for another term is up to President Trump, but based on the language of the USMCA related to the upcoming joint review, could Congress actually have the power to make this decision on its own?
04 May 2026 4 min read

Is There No Going Back on Trade? What Is the Path Forward? A Response to Lighthizer

Former U.S. Trade Rep. Bob Lighthizer has a new essay in Foreign Affairs, and I have some thoughts. I'm going to start with his brief big picture points on the direction of U.S. trade policy, and then go through a couple of the specific concepts he emphasizes.
27 Apr 2026 6 min read

The Section 301 Excess Capacity Investigation Needs Less Madness, More Method

Shortly after the Supreme Court ruled President Trump’s emergency tariffs under IEEPA  unconstitutional, the administration scrambled to rebuild its tariff wall. While the announcement of Section 122 tariffs immediately following the ruling will provide a temporary patch, the U.S. Trade Representative’s office quickly began to utilize another
24 Apr 2026 6 min read

War Tariffs

This is a co-authored post by Kathleen Claussen and Tim Meyer. Last week, President Trump announced that the United States would be imposing new tariffs of 50 percent of the value of any product coming from any country that sells weapons or provides military aid to Iran. Some commentators questioned
14 Apr 2026 5 min read

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