International Trade Law and Domestic Policy

Canada, the United States, and the WTO

By Jacqueline D. Krikorian

SERIES: Law and Society

UBC Press

Critics of the World Trade Organization argue that its binding dispute settlement process imposes a neoliberal agenda on its member states with little to no input from their citizenry or governments. If this is the case, why would any nation agree to participate?

In International Trade Law and Domestic Policy, Jacqueline Krikorian explores this question by examining the impact of the WTO’s dispute settlement mechanism on domestic policies in the United States and Canada. She demonstrates that the WTO’s ability to influence domestic arrangements has been constrained by three factors: judicial deference, institutional arrangements, and strategic decision making by political elites in Ottawa and Washington.

In this groundbreaking assessment of whether supranational courts are now setting the legislative agenda of sovereign nations, Krikorian brings the insights of law and politics scholarship to bear on a subject matter traditionally addressed by international relations scholars. By doing so, she shows that the classic division between these two fields of study in the discipline of political science, though suitable in the postwar era, is outdated in the context of a globalized world.

This book will not only interest legal scholars, political scientists, and public policy specialists, but also international trade law practitioners, public officials, and members of the legal profession.

Awards

, Commended - The Hill Times List of Top 100 Best Books for 2013

RELATED TOPICS: Globalization, International Law, International Politics, International Relations, Law, Law & Politics, Political Science

Krikorian’s book is significant in that it makes an important contribution to the discipline by developing ‘a better understanding of the dynamic relationship between international and national legal frameworks.’ Recommended. Graduate, research, and professional collections. C. W. Herrick, Muhlenberg College, Choice

This book provides an original framework for analysis of the effects of the WTO’s binding dispute settlement on national policy making. It greatly adds to scholarly debate both in the field of WTO issues and, more generally, the interaction of supranational decisions on national policy making. Christopher Parlin is Principal, Parlin & Associates, and an Adjunct Professor of Law at Georgetown University

The WTO dispute settlement mechanism is widely regarded as the most significant aspect of a very important attempt at international regime building. This book provides a new objective dimension in the analysis and understanding of this mechanism ... It makes a significant original contribution across several academic subfields, including international trade law, international political economy, international law, and domestic legal theory. Gilbert R. Winham, Professor Emeritus, Department of Political Science and Adjunct Professor of Law, Faculty of Law, Dalhousie University

Jacqueline D. Krikorian is an associate professor in the Department of Political Science and in the Law and Society program at York University. She is a specialist in government and public law.

1 Judicial Review and the WTO

2 Courts and Public Policy Making

3 The Legalization of the GATT Trading Regime

4 The Establishment of the WTO Dispute Settlement Mechanism

5 Washington, Ottawa, and the WTO Agreement

6 The United States and the WTO

7 The United States, Trade Remedies, and the WTO

8 Canada and the WTO

9 The Impact of the WTO Dispute Settlement Mechanism on Domestic Law and Policy

Table of Authorities

Table of Cases

Notes