How do international agencies and governments regulate trade transactions? How are trade disputes resolved? How does “free trade” affect consumer protection, public health, and the environment? To what extent have governments ceded control over trade transactions to the World Trade Organization (WTO)? WTO panels and the Appellate Body interpret and apply WTO treaties; do they also impose new trade obligations on member states? This course examines the scope and major functions of the WTO, and the operation of US trade protection procedures (safeguards, antidumping measures, and countervailing duties on subsidized imports). We examine the functions of US trade authorities (the US Trade Representative, the Department of Commerce, the International Trade Commission, and the federal courts) in the context of WTO treaty discipline and WTO judicial review.
