WTO Dispute Settlement

1
WTO Dispute Settlement

• ET450
• Environmental Regulation
• 10/31/2006

2
Before WTO GATT

• After WWII, U.S. and allied countries sought to
  impose order on trade flow. 1st step GATT
  (General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade)
• Signed in 1947
• A set of bilateral trade agreements to reduce
  trade barriers

3
GATT -gt WTO

• Lack of enforcement power to carry out the
  decision, a stronger organization is formed in
  1995 World Trade Organization (WTO)
• With multi-country, multi-lateral trade

4
WTO whats the differences

• Compared WTO with GATT, WTO
• is a full-fledged international organization that
  deals with trade issues internationally
• not only includes trade in tangible goods, but
  also deals with trade in services (banking,
  insurance, )
• settles disputes
• sometimes intervenes countrys sovereignty

5
Tuna-Dolphin Case
6
Chronology of Tuna-Dolphin Case

• Late 1980s, tightening U.S. regulatory standards,
  improvement of fishing technology, incidental
  dolphin mortality by U.S. vessels dropped by 90
• 1990 U.S. federal court decision tuna embargo
  from Mexico, Venezuela, and Pacific islands
• 1991 GATT ruled that U.S. is violating the
  agreement. But U.S. refused to accept the
  decision.

7
Chronology of Tuna-Dolphin Case (contd.)

• 1992 U.S. Mexico, and 8 other tuna-catching
  nations signed the first major international
  accord to protect dolphins
• However, U.S. still have embargo on tuna from
  Mexico
• 1995 compromise and negotiation were made,
  Mexico and 10 other tuna-catching countries
  pledged to cap their annual dolphin killed to
  5000/year

8
Dolphin Mortality
Source maninnature.com
9
Shrimp-Turtle Case
Before turtle excluder devices (TED) loggerhead
turtles were casualties of shrimping operations
(sourcehttp//www.photolib.noaa.gov/)