International Economic Law and Policy Blog
  • Home
  • About
  • WorldTradeLaw.net
Sign in Subscribe

Assistant USTR For Trade Policy and Economics Job

A job advertisement from USTR: The incumbent serves as the Assistant U.S. Trade Representative for Trade Policy and Economics. The Office is responsible for managing a staff of professionals engaged in the intra-agency and interagency trade policy coordination.  The Office also provides statistical and economic analytical support for
Simon Lester 18 Jul 2011 1 min read

Australia and the U.S. on the Aspect of the Measure to be Examined under GATT Article XX

More on the issue of the aspect of the measure to be examined under Article XX, from last week's DSB meeting: Australia had reservations about the reasoning applied by the Appellate Body in its application of the necessary test under Article 20 of GATT 1994. According to Australia,
Simon Lester 18 Jul 2011 1 min read

The Problem of "Overly Restrictive Regulations" on Whiskey

From a recent op-ed by USTR Ron Kirk: Tariff levels are generally falling around the world, but U.S. companies still face significant “behind-the-border” barriers, which typically take the form of complex, burdensome regulations and standards. The story of Tuthilltown Spirits of Gardiner, N.Y., illustrates the
Simon Lester 15 Jul 2011 4 min read

The Economics of Overlapping AD/CVDs

In an article entitled The Offsetting Duty Norm and the Simultaneous Application of Countervailing and Antidumping Duties, economist Brian Kelly writes about the economics of overlapping AD/CVD measures.  From the abstract: World Trade Organization (WTO) members have long expressed a norm concerning the trade “remedies” of countervailing (anti-subsidy)
Simon Lester 15 Jul 2011 1 min read

The Irrationality of the WTO Export Duty Regime: Availability of GATT Article XX and Beyond

The Panel decision in China-Raw Materials reveals an utterly irrational aspect of the system: the ad hoc rules on export duties imposed on a handful of acceding members are effectively the most "sacred" rules of the WTO, in that they are permanent, not amendable, and not entitled
Julia Qin 11 Jul 2011 4 min read

GATT Article XX as a Defense to Non-GATT Agreements

Following up on posts here, here, here and here about GATT Article XX as a defense to claims under non-GATT agreements, this is from last Tuesday's China - Raw Materials panel report: 7.152 This brings us to the issue of whether Article XX of the GATT 1994
Simon Lester 10 Jul 2011 1 min read

Farm Subsidies, the U.S. Budget Deficit, and the Doha Round

Former Appellate Body Member Jim Bacchus makes the case for cutting farm subsidies: The federal budgetary squeeze on agricultural subsidies offers the President and Congress a beckoning opportunity to seize and shape a grand global bargain on international trade. We could trade new cuts in farm subsidies for new markets
Simon Lester 10 Jul 2011 1 min read

Carving Tobacco out of Trade Agreements

I've heard this argument before, but I've never seen it written up (and thus been able to blog about it).  Here's the text of a draft letter to USTR Ron Kirk, which is being circulated by Congresswoman Linda Sanchez to her House colleagues: ... We
Simon Lester 07 Jul 2011 2 min read

New Zealand, Plain Packaging, and Investor-State

How is New Zealand reacting to the Philip Morris investment claim against Australia's plain packaging law?  This is from the New Zealand Herald: Big tobacco companies won't be able to sue the Government over anti-smoking laws, Prime Minister John Key says. Philip Morris Asia, based
Simon Lester 04 Jul 2011 1 min read

Currency Undervaluation at the CIT

Here's more on China currency issues, from Mark Drajem of Bloomberg: Aluminum-product makers filed a lawsuit to force the U.S. Commerce Department to levy tariffs on Chinese imports, countering the effect of a currency the companies deem to be undervalued. In a case at the Court
Simon Lester 04 Jul 2011 1 min read

About

International Economic Law and Policy Blog

International Economic Law and Policy Blog

Expert commentary on the law, politics and economics of international trade and investment

Sign up for email notifications

jamie@example.com
Subscribe

Featured

Does The EU Need Its Own Section 301 To Counter China's Distortions?

Recently, economists Sander Tordoir and Brad Setser suggested that the EU may need its own version of Section 301 in order to "confront China’s systemic distortions beyond piecemeal trade defence."
17 Jun 2026 7 min read

The Section 301 Forced Labor Import Ban Report

On June 2, 2026, USTR released its report on its Section 301 investigation into acts, policies, and practices of various economies related to the failure to impose and effectively enforce a prohibition on the importation of goods produced with forced labor.
04 Jun 2026 11 min read

What To Expect from the USMCA Review?

The USMCA review is almost upon us. How exactly things will proceed is a bit unclear, as we've never done this sort of thing before, but July 1 is the six year anniversary of the USMCA's entry into force.
03 Jun 2026 15 min read

China in the World Trading System: A Response to Chad, and Some Comments on Froman-Greer

I'm going to use this post to (1) respond to Chad and (2) comment on an exchange between current U.S. Trade Rep. Jamieson Greer and former U.S. Trade Rep. Mike Froman at a recent CFR event.
01 Jun 2026 7 min read

My Response To Simon on China in the World Trading System

Here are two quick reactions to the super important question of what explains why countries did not use WTO dispute settlement to push China to change.
28 May 2026 2 min read

Topics

2008 Presidential Election

25 posts

2012 Republican Primary

6 posts

2020 Democratic Primary

22 posts

2020 Presidential Campaign

6 posts

2024 Presidential Campaign

9 posts

2024 Republican Primary

9 posts

Announcements

27 posts

Appellate Body

72 posts

CAFTA

5 posts

CETA

8 posts

Currency Disputes

57 posts

Development

23 posts

Digital Trade

59 posts

Domestic Trade Powers

10 posts

Dormant Commerce Clause

3 posts

DSU 25 Interim Appeals

43 posts

DSU Article 11

13 posts

Economic Integration

8 posts

Economic Statecraft

10 posts

EU-UK Trade Negotiation

5 posts

Exceptions

19 posts

Exchange Rates

6 posts

Export Restrictions

13 posts

Food Aid

5 posts

Foreign Investment

21 posts

FTA Negotiations

13 posts

FTAs - General

22 posts

Gambling Dispute

52 posts

Global Governance

9 posts

Globalization

13 posts

Government Procurement

5 posts

Green Steel Deal

14 posts

IEEPA

9 posts

IEL in Domestic Courts

20 posts

Indo-Pacific Economic Framework

5 posts

Industrial Policy

20 posts

Investor-State Arbitration

93 posts

Jamieson Greer

19 posts

Katherine Tai

66 posts

NAFTA

19 posts

NAFTA Chapter 11

15 posts

NAFTA Chapter 19

5 posts

National Security

38 posts

Non Appeal Pact

3 posts

Non-Discrimination Standards

60 posts

Non-Market Economies

7 posts

Non-Violation Nullification or Impairment

19 posts

Precedent

25 posts

Public Views of Trade

9 posts

Rare Earths

1 post

Robert Lighthizer

18 posts

Russia Trade Sanctions

17 posts

Sanctions

15 posts

Section 301

14 posts

Sovereignty

9 posts

Speech

1 post

SPS/TBT

5 posts

Standards of Review

7 posts

State Enterprises

8 posts

Sub-National Trade Issues

5 posts

Subsidies

83 posts

Tariffs

3 posts

Terms of Trade Manipulation

6 posts

Trade Agreements

21 posts

Trade and Competition

14 posts

Trade and Development

21 posts

Trade and Environment

119 posts

Trade and Health

20 posts

Trade and Human Rights

9 posts

Trade and Income Inequality

1 post

Trade and Intellectual Property

26 posts

Trade and Labor

26 posts

Trade and Peace

4 posts

Trade and Security

35 posts

Trade and the Stock Market

2 posts

Trade Balance

13 posts

Trade in Everything

65 posts

Trade in Services

21 posts

Trade Law and International Law

10 posts

Trade Preferences/GSP

23 posts

Trade Remedies

64 posts

Trans Pacific Partnership

9 posts

Trump Administration

55 posts

U.S. Trade Policy

32 posts

U.S. Trade Politics

60 posts

US-China Trade Relations

28 posts

USMCA

19 posts

USMCA Dispute Settlement

33 posts

USMCA Sunset/Review Clause

24 posts

USTR

16 posts

WTO - General

25 posts

WTO Accessions

8 posts

WTO Disputes

177 posts

WTO DS Reform

13 posts

WTO Jurisprudence

28 posts

WTO Negotiations

30 posts
Powered by Ghost