The Future of the World Trade Organization and the Changing Structure of the International Legal System

Julien Chaisse, World Trade Institute, Bern
Tiziano Balmelli, University of Fribourg

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Abstract

WTO law signals the birth of a truly international legal system in the realm of trade which could perhaps be considered as a “proto-supranational structure” . Trade law highlights the numerous changes taking place through the transfer of competencies from the Member States to the European Community, the protean importance given to private economic players by international rules and the desire to coordinate and even harmonize trade policies at the world level.

These phenomena, which led to the reformulation of the role of the nation-state as a pillar of the social edifice and the notion of sovereignty, further blurred the dividing line, which seemed so firmly established, between private and public interests and between private and general interests, in the realm of international law.

Remaining true to its dynamic character, the scope of WTO law will be even wider after the completion of the Doha Round of negotiations. The present book, consisting of two volumes, seeks to offer its readers targeted analyses of key issues of the WTO system which constitute the core of the Doha Round.

Volume 1 of this book deals with policies and legal issues. It contains chapters analyzing the Doha Agenda and the negotiations on world trade, as well as chapters submitting proposals for reforming the WTO as a global trading system. The last three chapters of Volume 1 examine how WTO law relates to other rules of international law. Volume 2 deals with the WTO judicial system. By interpreting WTO agreements, the latter maintains the consistency of WTO law and contributes significantly to its progress within the international legal order. Negotiating the review of the WTO Dispute Settlement Agreement being a key issue, several chapters of Volume 2 analyze current problems and discuss likely future prospects. There are also some proposals for reforms and they certainly deserve to be considered in present and future negotiations. A brief summary of each chapter contained in the two volumes of this book has been published in a special section titled “Abstracts”. Similarly, the authors who have honored us by contributing to this book have been introduced individually in the section titled “Authors’ Profiles” and we are very grateful to them for their confidence in this project. Their analyses have contributed to the richness of this collective work.