Publication Type

Journal Article

Version

acceptedVersion

Publication Date

9-2021

Abstract

The WTO dispute settlement system is in crisis due to the persistent blockage of the appointment of Appellate Body members by the United States. This paper reviews the US criticisms against the Appellate Body and argues that its allegations are unfounded and its approach is wrong. To deal with the US blockage, various proposals have been made, with the most popular being the Multiparty Interim Appeal Arbitration Arrangement (MPIA) set up by several key Members including the European Union and China. After a thorough analysis of the key features of the MPIA from both theoretical and practical perspectives, this paper argues that the MPIA fails to provide a proper solution to the Appellate Body crisis due to its many defects. Instead, the paper suggests the appointment of Appellate Body members based on majority voting at the General Council. This paper concludes by noting that only such a rule-based solution can not only solve the current Appellate Body crisis but also deter similar attempts to sabotage the WTO dispute settlement system in the future.

Discipline

International Trade Law | Law and Economics

Publication

Journal of International Economic Law

Volume

24

Issue

3

First Page

534

Last Page

550

ISSN

1369-3034

Identifier

10.1093/jiel/jgab031

Publisher

Oxford University Press (OUP): Policy E - Oxford Open Option D

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