The general rules of the multilateral system cover trade in energy, although they are arguably not designed to specifically tackle major issues pertinent for energy trade. The traditional focus of GATT has been market access of domestic manufactured products abroad rather than access to foreign...

This essay aims to determine whether developing countries can benefit from a multilateral agreement on foreign direct investment (FDI). For the purpose of this essay, the problem is broken into two separate questions. The first question is whether a multilateral agreement can help increase the...

The increased importance of environmental protection led to the introduction of sustainability-related criteria in standard-setting practices. A discomfort with the functioning, working methods and certain rigidities of the global standardizing bodies such as the ISO led to a mushrooming of a...

The WTO Agreement is said to be unconcerned with trade effects. Instead, WTO member countries incur state responsibility on the basis of their acts alone. This responsibility is reinforced by the irrebuttable presumption contained in DSU Art. 3.8 and longstanding practice, which together...

Governments increasingly are seeking to use bilateral and regional trade agreements to reduce the cost-increasing effects of differences in product market regulation. They also pursue regulatory cooperation independent of trade agreements. It is important to understand what is being done through...