Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-lj6df Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-16T20:19:26.508Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Cross-agreement retaliation in the WTO dispute settlement system: an important enforcement mechanism for developing countries?

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 June 2008

LUCAS EDUARDO F. A. SPADANO
LUCAS EDUARDO F. A. SPADANO*
Affiliation:
Lima Netto, Campos, Fialho, Canabrava Advogados, Belo Horizonte, Brazil
*
*Correspondence to: E-mail: [email protected].
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

This article aims at analysing the merits and limits of ‘cross-retaliation’ as a mechanism to induce compliance in WTO dispute settlement, specifically from the perspective of developing countries. The focus is on cross-agreement retaliation, in particular with respect to the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS), as this seems to be the most ‘promising’ area for developing countries. Although there are several legal, economic, and administrative difficulties related to the implementation of a suspension of TRIPS obligations and there is so far no practical experience, this seems to remain an interesting option for developing countries – or at least for the largest ones among them – wishing to obtain greater leverage in the system.

Type
Review Article
Information
World Trade Review , Volume 7 , Issue 3 , July 2008 , pp. 511 - 545
Copyright
Copyright © Lucas Eduardo F. A. Spadano 2008

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Anderson, K. (2002), ‘Peculiarities of Retaliation in WTO Dispute Settlement’, World Trade Review, 1(2): 123–134.Google Scholar
Basso, M. and Beas, E. (2005), ‘Cross-Retaliation through TRIPS in the Cotton Dispute?’, Bridges, 9(5): 19–20. Available from: www.ictsd.org/monthly/bridges/BRIDGES9-5.pdf [Accessed 1 August 2005].Google Scholar
Bhala, R. (2001), International Trade Law: Theory and Practice, 2nd edn, New York: Lexis Publishing.Google Scholar
Breuss, F., Griller, S., and Vranes, E. (eds.) (2003), The Banana Dispute: An Economic and Legal Analysis, Vienna: Springer-Verlag.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bronckers, M. and van den Broek, N. (2005), ‘Financial Compensation in the WTO: Improving the Remedies of WTO Dispute Settlement’, Journal of International Economic Law, 8(1): 101–126.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Busch, M. L. and Reinhardt, E. (2003), ‘The Evolution of GATT/WTO Dispute Settlement’, in Curtis, J. M. and Ciuriak, D. (eds.) Trade Policy Research 2003, Ottawa: Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade, pp. 143–183.Google Scholar
Capling, A. (2004), ‘Trading Ideas: The Politics of Intellectual Property’, in Hocking, B. and McGuire, S. (eds.) Trade politics, 2nd edn, London: Routledge, pp. 179–193.Google Scholar
Carmody, C. (2002), ‘Remedies and Conformity under WTO Agreement’, Journal of International Economic Law, 5(2): 307–329.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Charnovitz, S. (2001), ‘Rethinking WTO Trade Sanctions’, American Journal of International Law, 95(4): 792–832.Google Scholar
Charnovitz, S. (2002), ‘Should the Teeth be Pulled? An Analysis of WTO Sanctions’, in Kennedy, D. L. M. and Southwick, J. D. (eds.) The Political Economy Of International Trade Law: Essays in Honor of Robert E. Hudec, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, pp. 602–635.Google Scholar
Clough, M. (2000), ‘The WTO Dispute Settlement System: A Practitioner Perspective’, Fordham International Law Journal, 24(1/2): 252–274.Google Scholar
Cottier, T. (1991), ‘The Prospects for Intellectual Property in GATT’, Common Market Law Review, 28(2): 383–414.Google Scholar
Croome, J. (1999), Reshaping the World Trading System: A History of the Uruguay Round, 2nd edn, The Hague: Kluwer Law International.Google Scholar
Davey, W. J. (2005), ‘The Sutherland Report on Dispute Settlement: A Comment’, Journal of International Economic Law, 8(2): 321–328.Google Scholar
Goh, G. and Ziegler, A. R. (2003), ‘Retrospective Remedies in the WTO after Automotive Leather’, Journal of International Economic Law, 6(3): 545–564.Google Scholar
Grané, P. (2001), ‘Remedies under WTO Law’, Journal of International Economic Law, 4(4): 755–772.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hoekman, B. M. (2000), ‘Comment on Part One’, in Sauvé, P. and Stern, R. M. (eds.) GATS 2000: New Directions in Services Trade Liberalization, Washington, DC: Brookings Institution Press, pp. 132–135.Google Scholar
Hoekman, B. M. and Kostecki, M. M. (2001), The Political Economy of the World Trading System: The WTO and Beyond, 2nd edn, Oxford: Oxford University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Horlick, G. N. (2002), ‘Problems with the Compliance Structure of the WTO Dispute Resolution Process’, in Kennedy, D. L. M. and Southwick, J. D. (eds.) The Political Economy of International Trade Law: Essays in Honor of Robert E. Hudec, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, pp. 636–645.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hudec, R. E. (1993), Enforcing International Trade Law: The Evolution of the Modern GATT Legal System, Salem, NH: Butterworth Legal Publishers.Google Scholar
Hudec, R. E. (2000), ‘Broadening the Scope of Remedies in WTO Dispute Settlement’, in Weiss, F. (ed.) Improving WTO Dispute Settlement Procedures: Issues and Lessons from the Practice of other International Courts and Tribunals, London: Cameron May, pp. 369–400.Google Scholar
Hudec, R. E. (2002), ‘The Adequacy of WTO Dispute Settlement Remedies: A Developing Country Perspective’, in Hoekman, B., Mattoo, A., and English, P. (eds.) Development, Trade and the WTO: A Handbook, Washington, DC: The World Bank, pp. 81–91.Google Scholar
Hurd, I. (1999), ‘Legitimacy and Authority in International Politics’, International Organization, 53(2): 379–408.Google Scholar
Ierley, D. (2002), ‘Defining the Factors that Influence Developing Country Compliance with and Participation in the WTO Dispute Settlement System: Another Look at the Dispute over Bananas’, Law and Policy in International Business, 33(4): 615–651.Google Scholar
Jackson, J. H. (1998), The World Trade Organization: Constitution and Jurisprudence, London: The Royal Institute of International Affairs.Google Scholar
Jackson, J. H. (2004), ‘International Law Status of WTO Dispute Settlement Reports: Obligation to Comply or Option to “buy out”?’, American Journal of International Law, 98(1): 109–123.Google Scholar
Jackson, J. H., Davey, W. J., and Sykes, A. O. Jr. (2002), Legal Problems of International Economic Relations: Cases, Materials and Text, 4th edn, St. Paul, MN: West Group.Google Scholar
Jackson, J. H. and Grané, P. (2001), ‘The Saga Continues: An Update on the Banana Dispute and Its Procedural Offspring’, Journal of International Economic Law, 4(3): 581–595.Google Scholar
Jawara, F. and Kwa, A. (2004), Behind the Scenes at the WTO: The Real World of International Trade Negotiations/Lessons from Cancun, updated edn, London: Zed Books.Google Scholar
Jürgensen, T. (2005), ‘Crime and Punishment: Retaliation under the World Trade Organization Dispute Settlement System’, Journal of World Trade, 39(2): 327–340.Google Scholar
Kearns, J. E. and Charnovitz, S. (2002), ‘Adjudicating Compliance in the WTO: A Review of DSU Article 21.5’, Journal of International Economic Law, 5(2): 331–352.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lawrence, R. Z. (2003) Crimes and Punishments: Retaliation under the WTO, Washington, DC: Institute for International Economics.Google Scholar
Lee, D. (2004), ‘Understanding the WTO Dispute Settlement Process’, in Hocking, B. and McGuire, S. (eds.) Trade politics, 2nd edn, London: Routledge, pp. 120–132.Google Scholar
Leitner, K. and Lester, S. (2005), ‘WTO Dispute Settlement 1995–2004: A Statistical Analysis’, Journal of International Economic Law, 8(1): 231–244.Google Scholar
Matsushita, M., Schoenbaum, T. J. and Mavroidis, P. (2003) World Trade Organization: Law, Practice, and Policy, Oxford: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
Mavroidis, P. C. (2000), ‘Remedies in the WTO Legal System: Between a Rock and a Hard Place’, European Journal of International Law, 11(4): 763–813.Google Scholar
Mavroidis, P. C. (2004), ‘Proposals for reform of Article 22 of the DSU: reconsidering the “sequencing” issue and suspension of concessions’, in Ortino, F. and Petersmann, E.-U. (eds.) The WTO Dispute Settlement System 1995–2003, The Hague: Kluwer Law International, pp. 61–73.Google Scholar
Mercurio, B. (2003), ‘Dispute Settlement in the WTO: Questioning the “security” and “predictability” of the implementation phase of the DSU?’, in Buckley, R. P. (ed.) The WTO and the Doha Round: The Changing Face of World Trade, The Hague: Kluwer Law International, pp. 115–143.Google Scholar
Mercurio, B. (2004), ‘Improving dispute settlement in the World Trade Organization: the Dispute Settlement Understanding Review – making it work?’, Journal of World Trade, 38(5): 795–854.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
O'Connor, B. and Djordjevic, M. (2005), ‘Practical Aspects of Monetary Compensation: The US–Copyright Case’, Journal of International Economic Law, 8(1): 127–142.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ortino, F. and Petersmann, E.-U. (eds.) (2004) The WTO Dispute Settlement System 1995–2003, The Hague: Kluwer Law International.Google Scholar
Oxford Dictionary of Law (2002), Martin, E. A. (ed.) 5th edn, Oxford: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
Palmeter, D. and Alexandrov, S. (2002), ‘ “Inducing Compliance” in WTO Dispute Settlement’, in Kennedy, D. L. M. and Southwick, J. D. (eds.) The Political Economy of International Trade Law: Essays in Honor of Robert E. Hudec, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, pp. 646–666.Google Scholar
Palmeter, D. and Mavroidis, P. C. (2004), Dispute Settlement in the World Trade Organization: Practice and Procedure, 2nd edn, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Pauwelyn, J. (2000), ‘Enforcement and Countermeasures in the WTO: Rules are Rules – Toward a More Collective Approach’, American Journal of International Law, 94(2): 335–347.Google Scholar
Pauwelyn, J. (2003) Conflict of Norms in Public International Law: How WTO Law Relates to Other Rules of International Law, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Petersmann, E.-U. (1997), ‘International Trade Law and the GATT/WTO Dispute Settlement System 1948–1996: An Introduction’, in Petersmann, E.-U. (ed.) International Trade Law and the GATT/WTO Dispute Settlement System, The Hague: Kluwer Law International, pp. 3–122.Google Scholar
Porges, A. (1998), ‘The New Dispute Settlement: From the GATT to the WTO’, The Commerce Department Speaks on International Trade and Investment, Corporate Law and Practice Course Handbook Series, New York: Practising Law Institute, pp. 1095–1115.Google Scholar
Reif, T. M. and Florestal, M. (1998), ‘Revenge of the Push-Me, Pull-You: The Implementation Process under the WTO Dispute Settlement Understanding’, International Lawyer, 32(3): 755–788.Google Scholar
Roessler, F. (1998), ‘Domestic Policy Objectives and the Multilateral Trade Order: Lessons from the Past’, in Krueger, A. (ed.) The WTO as an International Organization, Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, pp. 213–229.Google Scholar
Salas, M. and Jackson, J. H. (2000), ‘Procedural Overview of the WTO EC – Banana Dispute’, Journal of International Economic Law, 3(1): 145–166.Google Scholar
Schoenbaum, T. J. (1998), ‘WTO Dispute Settlement: Praise and Suggestions for Reform’, International and Comparative Law Quarterly, 47(3): 647–658.Google Scholar
Schwartz, W. F. and A. O., Sykes (2002), ‘The Economic Structure of Renegotiation and Dispute Resolution in the World Trade Organization’, Journal of Legal Studies, 31(1): S179–S204.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
South Centre (1999), ‘Issues Regarding the Review of the WTO Dispute Settlement Mechanism’, TRADE Working Papers (1). Available from: www.southcentre.org/publications/trade/dispute.pdf [Accessed 1 August 2005].Google Scholar
Steger, D. (2004) Peace through Trade: Building the World Trade Organization, London: Cameron May.Google Scholar
Subramanian, A. and Watal, J. (2000), ‘Can TRIPS Serve as an Enforcement Device for Developing Countries in the WTO?’, Journal of International Economic Law, 3(3): 403–416.Google Scholar
Sykes, A. O. (2000), ‘The Remedy for Breach of Obligations under the WTO Dispute Settlement Understanding: Damages of Specific Performance?’, in Bronckers, M. and Quick, R. (eds.) New Directions in International Economic Law: Essays in Honour of John H. Jackson, The Hague: Kluwer Law International, pp. 347–357.Google Scholar
Trebilcock, M. J. and Howse, R. (1999), The Regulation of International Trade, 2nd edn, London: Routledge.Google Scholar
Valles, C. M. and McGivern, B. P. (2000), ‘The Right to Retaliate under the WTO Agreement: The “Sequencing” Problem’, Journal of World Trade, 34(2): 63–84.Google Scholar
Van den Broek, N. (2003), ‘Power Paradoxes in Enforcement and Implementation of World Trade Organization Dispute Settlement Reports: Interdisciplinary Approaches and New Proposals’, Journal of World Trade, 37(1): 127–162.Google Scholar
Vranes, E. (2003), ‘Cross Retaliation under GATS and TRIPS – An Optimal Enforcement Device for Developing Countries?’, in Breuss, F., Griller, S., and Vranes, E. (eds.) The Banana Dispute: An Economic and Legal Analysis, Vienna: Springer-Verlag, pp. 113–130.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Waincymer, J. (2002), WTO Litigation: Procedural Aspects of Formal Dispute Settlement, London: Cameron May.Google Scholar
Watal, J. (2001), Intellectual Property Rights in the WTO and Developing Countries, The Hague: Kluwer Law International.Google Scholar
WTO (2004) ‘The Future of the WTO: Addressing Institutional Challenges in the New Millennium’, Report by the Consultative Board to the Director-General Panitchpakdi, by P. Sutherland (Chairman), J. Bhagwati, K. Botchwey, N. FitzGerald, K. Hamada, J.H. Jackson, C. Lafer, T. de Montbrial, WTO Geneva.Google Scholar
Wuorinen, M. (1997), ‘The Cross-Retaliation in the WTO Dispute Settlement System: Can the European Communities Benefit from It?’, Finnish Yearbook of International Law, 8: 340–365.Google Scholar