From its humble beginnings in the aftermath of World War II, international trade law has risen to the forefront of global governance. Virtually all countries on the planet are bound by its rules, which affect trillions of dollars’ worth of trade in goods, services, and intellectual property assets across the world. The scope of such rules has vastly expanded in recent decades, and nowadays covers issues as diverse as market access, trade discrimination, cross-border investment, labelling rules, food security, renewable energy subsidies, pharmaceutical patents, health measures, and GMOs. A robust institutional structure – comprising the World Trade Organization (WTO), the European Communities (EC), the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), the Mercosur, and many other bodies – has contributed to the consolidation of the world trading system at the global and regional level. At the same time, strong dispute settlement mechanisms have enabled the emergence of a tight and influential community of transnational practitioners. Despite its many successes, international trade law remains highly controversial: while many applaud it as a milestone in economic relations, others decry its intrusiveness in domestic policymaking; while many extoll the virtues of trade liberalization as a recipe for prosperity, many others see it as a tool for hegemony and uneven development. For enthusiasts and detractors alike, the world trading system is where legal, economic, and policy discourses collide.
This course explores the core legal principles and the most salient challenges facing the international trade legal regime, with a focus on the WTO and a number of selected regional mechanisms. We will begin by exploring the economic rationales behind trade law and consider their compatibility with social development, human rights, and environmental protection. Next, we will delineate the institutional structure of the word trade regine, appraise its evolution over time, and discuss the features and performance of its dispute settlement mechanism. We will then turn to the fundamental obligations set out in international trade agreements, including those concerning market access, quantitative restrictions, non-discrimination, technical regulations, sanitary and phytosanitary measures, subsidies, anti-dumping, trade in services, and intellectual property rights. We will conclude by appraising the recent developments running against global economic integration, such as the US-China trade wars, Trump’s protectionist agenda, and the future of the community of international trade experts.
- Instructor: Tommaso Soave