The Economist has an interesting article about the some Chinese government officials who left the public sector to start a private oil drilling business.  Some key excerpts: It was in 2003 that the central government’s patience snapped. At meetings in the spring, Jingbian officials told the local oil barons

Alberto Alemanno has an interesting post on the relationship of Codex setting food safety standards and WTO law: Although few Europeans outside of the livestock industry have heard about this veterinary drug, the establishment of MRLs of ractopamine by the Codex Alimentarius Commission is set to become not only the

See here: Job Title:Deputy Assistant Legal Adviser Department:Department Of State Job Announcement Number:CSHRM-2012-0022 SALARY RANGE: $119,554.00 to $179,700.00 / Per Year OPEN PERIOD: Friday, August 10, 2012 to Friday, August 24, 2012 SERIES & GRADE: ES-0905-00 POSITION INFORMATION: Full Time

From law prof Jarrod Wong: The Institute for Transnational Arbitration (ITA) will be holding its Second Annual Winter Forum at the Biltmore Hotel in Miami, Florida on January 24-25, 2013. The first half of the Winter Forum will showcase two works-in-progress selected pursuant to a Call-for-

Law professor Leon Trakman writes about China's "prolifering investment treaty program": Notwithstanding China’s endorsement of investor-state arbitration more than a decade ago, only one investor claim has been initiated against it and it was withdrawn.  This does not necessarily mean that foreign investors will

Here's a letter sent by a number of members of congress -- including frequent trade critic Mike Michaud -- to President Obama relating to the TPP: August 2, 2012 The Honorable Barack Obama President of the United States 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. Washington, DC 20500 Dear Mr. President: Rules-based trade

Here is a table showing WTO complaints (consultations requests) for 2004-2012: YearNumber of Standard DSU Complaints, by year 2012 14 2011 8 2010 17 2009 14 2008 19 2007 13 2006 20 2005 12 2004 19 Here's a similar table for "matters", which is a

Over at the European Law Blog, Jess Lawrence provides a good summary of a recent ECJ case: Last week’s Xinanchem judgment, however, is a significant step along the path toward normalized trade relations between China and the EU. In this case, which Advocate General Kokott called “of fundamental importance