Towards a Mega-Plurilateral Dispute Settlement Mechanism for the WTO?

Abstract

The Dispute Settlement Mechanism (DSM) of the World Trade Organization (WTO) is facing the critical impasse, i.e., of the blockage of appointment of the Appellate Body (AB) members by the United States (US), which would impede its normal functioning in the foreseeable future. To address this imminent issue, this article proposes establishing within the WTO a mega-plurilateral dispute settlement mechanism in which the original Members of the WTO may choose not to participate. This new mechanism would resemble every other aspect of the current DSM. It should be noted the impasse needs to be addressed within a short period of time and this article highly advocates an earlier renegotiation of this new plurilateral dispute settlement agracceement.

Hong Kong as a separate customs territory: Past, present and prospect

“…66 ; 2) establishment of Panels and adoption of Panel reports 67 ; and 3) appellate review and adoption of Appellate Body Reports (if applicable). 68 Since the US has blocked all new appointments [ 60 ], the Appellant Body of DSB is not functioning as it intends to: late in the Obama Administration, the US government began blocking reappointments, and in the subsequent years the US blocked all new appointments to the WTO Appellate Body [ 61 ]. The persons of the Appellate Body were reduced to only one on December 10, 2019; and the term of the last person expired on November 30, 2020.…”