uc:sendtilenven runat server id uc_sendtilenven
Ændre størrelse på tekst Print

World Trade Organization

Semesterangivelse: Forårs kursus

 
Udgave: Jura Kandidatuddannelsen 2011/2012
ECTS points: 10 ECTS
Punkter: 10 ECTS = 1/6 årsværk

Semester:

 Spring 2012
Uddannelsesdel: Kandidat niveau
Kontaktpersoner: Fagansvarlig: Laura Nielsen
Andre undervisere: associate professor, phd LLM, Laura Nielsen
Skema- oplysninger:  Vis skema for kurset
Samlet oversigt over tid og sted for alle kurser inden for Lektionsplan for Det Jurdiske Fakultet (kandidat) Jura Kandidatuddannelsen 2011/2012
Undervisnings- periode: Tuesday and Thursday, 13-15
1. Day: Tuesday 31.1.2012
Formål: The objectives of this course are to provide the students with a basic understanding of the WTO (World Trade Organization) and the law of international trade as established by the GATT 1994 and the other WTO agreements.
The WTO covers more than 90% of world trade – and not only governs trade in goods, but also trade in services and intellectual property. The WTO is also a controversial organization that is often blamed for marginalizing developing countries, being against the environment – and many other things. The course will also address some of the political issues/claims – as well as give the students an overview of the current negotiations under the Doha Mandate.
Between 1948 and 1995, the GATT existed as set of rules regulating trade in goods, enforceable only to the extent the “Contracting Parties” in the dispute could agree. The World War II allies sought to create a group of three entities (the Bretton Woods Institutions) to regulate international economic relations, just as the United Nations would regulate political disputes and threats to the peace. The International Monetary Fund and the World Bank were created as planned but the so-called “Havana Charter” which would have established a true international organization—the International Trade Organization-- to regulate international trade and enforce the rules, was never adopted. Consequently, the GATT served for almost 50 years as an imperfect but functioning ad hoc organization for international trade regulation. It was only in 1995 that a true international trade organization, the WTO, was created – after the seven year long trade negotiation known as the “Uruguay Round.”
The course introduces the students to the key legal and policy issues relating to international trade law under the WTO. The course provides the student with a general overview of the different agreements of the WTO. The students will be provided with tools to analyze each agreement; the theories behind them; a debate of pros and cons; analyze real examples from case law. The students will also present some WTO cases in Moot Court where the class “plays” they are litigating cases for WTO Members.
Indhold:
• Theory of Free Trade
• Institutional Framework
• Dispute Settlement Mechanism
• Dispute Settlement Mechanism and the Compliance Problem – the “Bananas Problem”
• MFN, Tariff Bindings, National Treatment and Non-Tariff Barriers
• Trade and Development Issues
• Trade and Environment Issues
• Social Dimension and Human Rights in the WTO?
• National Security and Trade Sanctions
• Safeguards, Dumping and Subsidies
• Technical Barriers to Trade
• SPS-Measures
• Agriculture
• TRIPS
• TRIPS and health issues
• Services
Kompetence- beskrivelse: The objective of the course is to enable the students to:

- Explain the functioning of the multilateral trading system in the WTO; the organizational structure, the purpose and history
- Analyze and apply the founding principles of the multilateral trading system (non-discriminatory international trade, MFN and national treatment) as laid down in the GATT 1947, but also as repeated and being the founding principles for many other WTO-agreements.
- Explain how the dispute settlement system of the WTO functions – including identifying the different types of reports, legal status of reports, style of interpretation, retaliation, compensation, etc.
- Be able to “navigate” between the WTO-agreements and identify which agreement that is the relevant for a given trade-topic.
- Analyze WTO-cases assigned in the readings and critically reflect upon the results of the case and relate the analysis to similar and dissimilar facts as well as reflect over the background for the case.
- Be able to relate the legal rules to real-life issues, including a basic understanding and ability to explain and critically reflect upon less attractive procedural or substantive results of the WTO-cases and relate those to the Review of the DSU (the negotiations on the dispute settlement area).
- explain and identify what the current negotiations are about – including development issues – on a very general level.
- To show that they have a certain overview of the multilateral trading system and present arguments, solutions, and analysis of the topic – whilst utilizing the trade terminology.
- Communicate and formulate her/his knowledge and arguments professionally and linguistically correct and in a structured and coherent way.
Eksamensform: Oral examination
Eksamen: 7. - 11. May 2012 (preliminary dates)
Kursus hjemmeside:
Bemærkninger: Reasonable understanding of English.
Pensum:
  • Raj Bhala, International Trade Law, third edition, LexisNexis 2008, ISBN: 987-1-4224-1941-3
  • Students will be instructed in how to download cases from the WTO homepage as part of the course.
  • Legal Text: Can be downloaded from WTO homepage or: Cambridge University Press: Legal Texts of the WTO or: Raj Bhala, International Trade Law, third edition SUPPLEMENT, ISBN 978-1-4224-1941-0.

    The books by Raj Bhala from LexisNexis can be ordered directly from LexisNexis in the US with huge discounts granted by Lexis to the students in this class (e.g., Bhala's trade law is app. $ 112 including delivery). The special order form is available with Laura Nielsen and the books should be ordered at least a week before classes starts - laura.nielsen@jur.ku.dk

    •  Readings are approximately 500 pages.
    Sidst redigeret: 8/2-2011



    Københavns Universitet