Dispute Resolution in the World Trade Organisation – The Experience of India

Julien L. Chaisse, Paul Cézanne University, Aix-en-Provence (France)

Abstract

The result of the Uruguay Round of multilateral negotiations (1986–94) comprised of agreements covering many different sectors of international trade . The whole commitments made under WTO Agreements must be implemented by the Member States of the WTO , but obviously at the moment of the implementation , problems arise with regard to the violations or simply to the interpretation of so many dispositions. As a result, a central feature of the WTO is its Dispute Settlement Mechanism (DSM), which has had an enormous impact on the world trade system and trade diplomacy . The WTO/DSM is unique in international law essentially because it is juridical and legalistic system for disputes dedicated to preserve the rights and obligations of WTO Members . This assessment is based on a comparative analysis with others international jurisdictions, but is even more relevant within the frame of a comparison with the very frequent use of arbitration in international private law. Moreover and unlike once again some of the more specialised systems of this type , these attributes are nested in a broad and comprehensive jurisprudence which clarify and develop the law arising from the Agreements. On the whole more than any other international organisation, the WTO is really able to ensure the efficiency of its law. One of the immediate consequences of such a well functioning system is that the developing countries are now making frequent use of the dispute settlement mechanism, bringing cases against developed and developing country members.