Sidley Austin

About: Sidley Austin is a other organization based out in Chicago, Illinois, United States. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Trade barrier & Competition law. The organization has 77 authors who have published 105 publications receiving 858 citations. The organization is also known as: Sidley Austin LLP & Sidley Austin Brown & Wood LLP.

Treaty Interpretation by the WTO Appellate Body

Abstract: This article analyses how the Appellate Body in practice expresses its interpretation of the WTO covered agreements, and discusses whether the Appellate Body's hermeneutics is different from that of other international courts and tribunals. It shows that it is impossible to discern the Appellate Body's hermeneutics from the practical exposition of how it interprets treaties. It also addresses the alleged particularity of the Appellate Body's hermeneutics. The key thread is the function of treaty interpretation in the development of the judicial function in the WTO. From the outset, the Appellate Body made the conscious choice to function as if it were a court. This exercise of the judicial function relates to the tasks and powers of the international judge and transcends the mere mandate and context of a particular court or tribunal as established in its constitutive document and other procedural rules. The Appellate Body's use of principles of interpretation has been instrumental in making acceptable its early choice to function as a court and to build its judicial identity. After 15 years of jurisprudence, the response of WTO members and the broader audience for the Appellate Body's decisions shows general acceptance of this initial, but perhaps not unavoidable, choice and the strategy to achieve this objective. In turn, this response has prompted less formalism in the Appellate Body's recent interpretations of the WTO treaties.

There Goes Gravity: eBay and the Death of Distance

Abstract: We compare the effect of geographic distance on eBay and total international trade flows. We consider the same 61 countries and basket of goods for both types of transactions. We find the effect of distance to be on average 65% smaller on eBay. We argue this difference is due to a reduction in search costs; it increases with product differentiation and is higher when trade partners speak different languages, when corruption in the exporting country is high and when uncertainty avoidance is high in the importing country. Moreover, eBay's seller-rating technology further reduces the distance effect on eBay.

There goes gravity : how eBay reduces trade costs

Abstract: This paper compares the impact of distance, a standard proxy for trade costs, on eBay and offline international trade flows. It considers the same set of 62 countries and the same basket of goods for both types of transactions, and finds the effect of distance to be on average 65 percent smaller on the eBay online platform than offline. Using interaction variables, this difference is explained by a reduction of information and trust frictions enabled through online technology. The analysis estimates the welfare gains from a reduction in offline frictions to the level prevailing online at 29 percent on average. Remote countries that are little known, with weak institutions, high levels of income inequality, inefficient ports, and little internet penetration benefit the most, as online markets help overcome government and offline market failures.

Standard of review in wto law

Abstract: There is no escaping standard of review in WTO dispute settlement. While the contested national measure and the claims made change from case to case, standard of review is a constant feature. In every case, panels and the Appellate Body must decide how intensively a measure should be reviewed and how much deference should be granted to national decision makers. Standard of review, therefore, plays a central role in defining the powers of national authorities in the trade field. In recent years, perhaps the most frequent criticism made of panels and the Appellate Body is that they have been overly intrusive in their review of national measures. This article explores the role and operation of standard of review in WTO law. It begins with the basic requirement that panels must make an 'objective assessment of the matter' and argues that this requirement does not specify the precise nature or intensity of review that panels undertake. The article goes on to consider how panels and the Appellate Body have approached the review of legal and factual determinations, as well as of different types of national measure. In particular, the article examines the review of trade remedy measures, SPS and TBT measures, and measures covered by the GATT 1994. The case-law indicates that the character of review changes with the nature of the determination at issue and also with the obligations in the covered agreement in consideration. The article suggests that the differing approaches to review reflect differences in the covered agreements themselves regarding the respective roles of panels and national authorities. Oxford University Press 2004; all rights reserved, Oxford University Press.

WTO Disciplines on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures: Balancing Policy Space and Legal Constraints

Abstract: General introduction 1. Rationales for offering subsidies Part I. Legal Disciplines on Subsidization and the Imposition of Countervailing Measures: 2. Historical overview 3. Scope of the SCM Agreement 4. Disciplines on subsidies 5. Remedies 6. Differential treatment Part II. Case Study: WTO Disciplines on Export Credit Support: 7. Export credit support 8. Rationale for disciplining export credit support: historical context 9. Main elements of the OECD Arrangement 10. Disciplines on export credit support for non-agricultural products 11. Disciplines on export credit support for agricultural products 12. Export credit support in light of the GATS 13. Negotiations on export credit support disciplines in the Doha round 14. Conclusion: normative analysis of disciplines on export credit support Part III. Normative Analysis of Disciplines on Subsidization and the Imposition of Countervailing Measures: 15. The scope of the SCM Agreement: specific subsidies 16. Disciplines on subsidization by developed countries 17. Disciplines on subsidization by developing countries 18. Disciplines on countervailing measures 19. Disciplines on subsidies in light of policy responses to the economic crisis Overall conclusion.