Trade between the United States and the eighteen countries of the Middle East and North Africa continues to grow at a steady pace, particularly with those countries that have signed free trade agreements with the US. This insightful and timely book examines US bilateral free trade agreements with a cross section of Middle Eastern countries. Economists discuss this topic generally, but few published works focus on the consistency of US bilateral free trade agreements with the relevant legal norms in the Middle East, other regional agreements and the multilateral trading system. Four central questions are at the heart of this book's illuminating analysis: 1. Are US bilateral free trade agreements consistent with international legal norms? 2. Are these agreements consistent with Middle Eastern norms on regional integration? 3. Are the agreements consistent with Islamic norms on trade liberalization? 4. Are the agreements consistent with local norms on intellectual property, environmental protection and labour standards?

The unfair trade practice of dumping has been regulated for many years. Dumping distorts competition by selling exports at exceedingly low prices in foreign markets. Over the years, anti-dumping measures designed to counter dumping through the imposition of duties have become the most effective and popular way employed to protect domestic industries under threat.
The 1980s, however, ushered in a counter measure: circumvention. As a means of avoiding anti-dumping duties, circumvention threatens the effectiveness of the anti-dumping system by undermining the protection provided for domestic industries. In response, anti-circumvention measures have been designed and implemented to combat those activities. This is the first book to offer a detailed analysis of this significant issue in anti-dumping practice.
Among the issues and topics addressed:
- What is the definition of 'circumvention' in anti-dumping law? What are the characteristics and types of circumvention? Should circumvention in anti-dumping practice be distinguished as an acceptable or unacceptable transaction? If so, what is the line between them?
- What are anti-circumvention measures in major jurisdictions? Are these anti-circumvention measures compatible with the current WTO rules? Can these anti-circumvention measures be seen as an abuse of trade protectionism? In domestic anti-circumvention legislation, how can one keep a balance between adopting anti-dumping measures effectively and protecting the interests of all participants in the game through anti-circumvention measures?
- What are the different arguments of the parties who are involved in an anti-circumvention investigation? What are the factsbehind those arguments?
- Should developing countries amend anti-circumvention provisions to their anti-dumping legislation for the purpose of protection as some developed countries did?
- What is the relationship between anti-circumvention measures and foreign direct investment?
- What steps should be taken against the abuse of anti-circumvention measures? What anti-circumvention measures should be designed in the context of the international legal framework so as not to conflict with the principles of the WTO? And how should they be implemented?

This greatly revised edition of an influential 1999 book consolidates its authoritative advocacy of the New Lex Mercatoria (NLM). Since the publication of the first edition, self-regulation and private governance in international business have gained world-wide recognition. Three dynamic commercial law initiatives in particular demonstrate that, in spite of the long-lasting dispute about the nature and dogmatic underpinnings of NLM, legal theory and international practice have accepted that transnational business law is open to the 'codification' of its contents. The UNIDROIT Principles of International Commercial Contracts, the Principles of European Contract Law, and (most recently and dramatically) the TransLex Principles at www.trans-lex.org all draw their legal conclusions from observing the real-life phenomena surrounding regional and global integration of markets and foreign direct investment. This new edition presents an advanced elaboration of the author's 'Creeping Codification' thesis based on the TransLex Principles, an Internet-based method using an ongoing, spontaneous, and dynamic codification process which is never completed. The TransLex Principles contain black-letter texts of 128 principles and rules of the NLM with comprehensive, constantly updated comparative law references from domestic statutes, court decisions, doctrine, arbitral awards, and uniform laws. An annex to this book contains a synopsis of the wealth of materials available on the TransLex web site as well as a rare personal account of one of the fathersA"of the NLM, Philippe Kahn. International legal practitioners and academics alike have long complained about the inadequate legal framework for international trade and commerce. This book, with its far-reaching theoretical and methodological analysis of the doctrine of an autonomous transnational economic law, clearly opens the way to an independent and workable third legal system alongside domestic law and public international law. It offers international practitioners (contract negotiators, arbitrators, attorneys and other representatives of the parties in international arbitration proceedings) with a powerful and reliable instrument to apply transnational commercial law in daily legal practice.

The globalisation of markets has pushed static, territorially-bounded legal structures towards a more rapid and efficient adaptation to the globalised and regionalised reality. In addition, substantial modifications in the structure and activities of financial institutions have increased risks and the need for new regulatory responses. Efforts to harmonise commercial law within the global order have resulted in a fragmented and ad hoc process, constructed according to multiple different interests and in order to preserve public policies in the face of transnational challenges. This book is the first to systematically analyse the current state of commercial law from a global perspective. The author seeks to both identify the reasons that are fostering the harmonisation process and to explain the ways in which it is developing. Among the relevant elements examined in this thorough analysis are the following: how emerging countries are absorbing international standards (with a special case study of Brazil); the impact of corporate activities on legal systems; the role of the corporation in promoting the standardisation of laws; issues of social responsibility and corporate accountability; justifications for the regulation of the corporate world; free trade vs. "fair trade"; the impact of treaty reservations and different forms of treaty incorporation into national legal systems; interaction between regional trade agreements and the WTO system; how movements of capital are reflected in international initiatives as well as in regional legislation and regulation; co-operation among national financial authorities; the emerging new lex mercatoria; and, the role of professional associations such as the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC).

There is a wide-spread consensus that UTPs occur throughout the food supply chain. Unfair trading practices (UTPs) can be defined as practices which grossly deviate from good commercial conduct, are contrary to good faith and fair dealing and are unilaterally imposed by one trading partner on its counterparty. Some Member States, such as France, Belgium and the UK, have already adopted legislation specifically prohibiting such practices (in the food and/or non-food supply chain). In addition, various self-regulatory initiatives exist. In April 2019, the European Parliament and the Council adopted Directive (EU) 2019/633 on unfair trading practices in business-to-business relationships in the agricultural and food supply chain. A Commission Proposal of April 2018 (COM(2018) 173 final) was substantially amended. To improve farmers' and small and medium sized businesses' position in the food supply chain, the Directive bans certain unfair trading practices including late payments for perishable food products; last minute order cancellations; unilateral changes to contracts; refusal to enter into a written contract; returning unsold or wasted products; payment for buyer's marketing. Each Member State has to designate a competent authority to enforce these rules and these authorities must have the power to both launch investigations and fine operators who break the rules. The Member States now have two years to implement the Directive.

Among the important elements of the problem (and its potential solutions) discussed in this book are the following:
- the strong influence of legal culture in the different Asian countries;
- the limits of IP harmonisation in Europe;
- the importance of understanding the political and cultural perceptions that prevail in the various Asian countries;
- the non-uniform approach of different Asian countries due in part to bilateral free trade agreements; and
- the experience of patent office cooperation and its potential as a model for smaller countries.

This new work provides a timely and in-depth examination of the interface between the recast Brussels I Regulation and international commercial arbitration. The nature of the exclusion of arbitration from the original Brussels I Regulation on the recognition and enforcement of judgments, and subsequent decisions of the CJEU in cases such as West Tankers, resulted in the use of delaying tactics by parties wishing to avoid arbitration agreements. The recast Brussels I Regulation sought to remedy the situation by clarifying the extent of the arbitration exclusion and providing further detail on the relationship between arbitration and the Regulation, with the aim of promoting the efficient resolution of international disputes within the European Union. While the recast Brussels I Regulation has gone some way to remedy the situation, problems remain for those engaged in international disputes in EU member states. Key features of this book include: Comprehensive analysis of the interface between the recast Brussels I Regulation and international commercial arbitration Examination of the dilatory tactics which may be employed to avoid arbitration such as forum shopping, commencing parallel proceedings and obtaining conflicting decisions Guidance on how these tactics are addressed in national and international law Assessment of the EU, international and national laws that apply to these tactics. Practitioners working within the fields of international commercial arbitration, civil litigation and private international law will find this work a valuable resource, providing a unique and detailed treatment of this important and technical subject.

In the early 21st-century, companies pursue their goals with little regard for national borders. However, it remains true that business activity is regulated to a significant extent by each national jurisdiction. This is particularly true of mergers; as anyone knows who has ever been involved in a transnational merger in multiple jurisdictions, the knottiest problems and issues arise from variations in national competition and merger laws. This text offers an in-depth proposal for an international merger control regime that is firmly grounded in and supported by a framework of economic and legal theory. It arrives at its conclusions along three major avenues: a study of the concepts of global public good and consumer welfare that underlie the progress of globalization; detailed analyses of the two most important and highly developed merger law systems, those of the European Union and the United States; and a systematic and comprehensive review of the major existing proposals, both institutional and scholarly, for an international merger control regime. A special chapter is devoted to the complex custodial role of the World Trade Organization, both in its present activity and as it is envisioned in the various proposals.

Economic globalization and Compliance with International Environmental Agreements is an innovative and in depth consideration of the challenges economic globalization poses for the effective application of multilateral environmental accords. The introductory part of the book examines particular challenges of economic globalization. Part II tackles the interrelationship of global and regional environmental agreements and free trade regimes. It first looks at trade and other economic measures mandated by various environmental agreements, then at environmental measures in economic agreements. The third part of the book turns to compliance, analyzing the potential positive and negative impact of multilateral institutions, states, and transnational corporate activity. The last chapter considers the impact on compliance of modern dispute avoidance and dispute settlement mechanisms.

Despite an increasing global awareness of environmental concerns, setting internationally binding and ambitious commitments has proven exceedingly complex. As states are seeking alternative methods to support global environmental protection, this book takes a closer look at the possibility of using national trade measures that make market access conditional on the environmental impact of the production process abroad. Inspired by accepted practice in other fields of law, Barbara Cooreman illustrates that the extraterritorial character of these environmental trade measures is not necessarily inconsistent with WTO law by proposing an extraterritoriality decision tree for trade measures targeting foreign production processes. Identifying key challenges through varied case studies, the author demonstrates that states can indeed use their market to further environmental progress, when the state's environment is affected and where a minimum level of international legal support exists for the environmental concern at issue. The book shows that current WTO laws leave more room for action than often thought and concludes that WTO law is no excuse for environmental inaction. Practical and comparative, this book will appeal to scholars of both environmental and trade law. It also offers a valuable tool to aid judges and lawmakers alike in determining the lawfulness of a measure.

This work examines trade and development from the point of view of developing countries, it provides a rare opportunity to understand - and benefit from - the perspectives of the developing world. Developing nations comprise two-thirds of the membership of the World Trade Organization (WTO) so a work produced by an array of experts from those countries provides an important window on the intersection of trade and development.
This timely and useful resource will examine each of the following topics:
Part I. The WTO, Multilateral and Regional Frameworks for Trade. 1. Development and the World Trade Organization: Proposal for the Agreement on Development Facilitation and the Council for Trade and Development in the WTO, Yong-Shik Lee. 2. A Reflection on the South-South Coalition in the Last Half Century from the Perspective of International Economic Law-making, An Chen. 3. The WTO, Democracy, and Development: A View from the South Bhupinder Chimni. 4. Liberalization of Trade in Services and Trade Negotiations, Alejandro Jara and M del. Carmen Dominguez. 5. One Year Since the WTO Hong Kong Ministerial Conference: Developing Countries Re-claim the Development Content of the WTO Doha Round, Faizel Ismail. 6. Trade Diplomacy and Development Clubs: The Interaction in the Americas, Diana Tussie. Part II Trade and Development: Cases of Seven Developing Countries. 7. Export Promotion and Economic Development: Korea's Experience, Jai S. Mah and Jae-hee Kang. 8. The Evolution of China's International Trade Policy: Development Through Protection and Liberalization, Jiangyu Wang. 9. Liberalizing Border Trade: Implications for Domestic Agricultural Markets in India, Rajesh Chadha, DevenderPratap, and Anjali Tandon. 10. Legal Reforms and International Economic Development: Iran's Economic Development from a Global Perspective, Ali Z. Marossi. 11. EU Maritime Rules and Transport Sector Policy Reform in Turkey, Subidey Togan. 12. Trade Liberalization for the Second Largest Country in Europe: Going East, West, Or Can It Be Both?. Oleg Riabokon. 13. How Far Can LDCs Benefit from Duty Free and Quota Free Market Access?: The Case of Uganda, Francis Mangeni.

The centrality of natural resources to global economic growth has placed the debate over their ownership and control at the forefront of legal, territorial and political disputes. Combining both legal and policy expertise with academic and practitioner perspectives this book considers the dimensions of natural resource governance at a time when disputes over their use grow more acute. Focusing on the law, regulation and governance of natural resources, this timely work examines in detail the conflicts and contradictions arising at the intersection between international economic law, sustainable development and other areas of international law, most notably human rights law and environmental law. Exploring the views of different stakeholder groups in the natural resources sectors, key chapters consider whether their differing interests and concerns are adequately addressed under national and international law. This book will appeal to scholars of law, political science and development studies. It will also benefit policy practitioners and advocacy specialists in development NGOs, research institutes and international organisations. Contributors include: S. Adelman, J.P. Bohoslavsky, C. Buggenhoudt, L. Cotula, D. Davitti, J. Faundez, J. Justo, L. Martin, J. McEldowney, S. McEldowney, C. Ochoa, D. Ong, M. Picq, F. Smith, C. Tan, J. Van Alstine, E. Wilson

This text makes detailed analyses and comments on the MAI from the perspective of a Chinese scholar. The author believes that the "behind closed doors" process of MAI negotiations is unacceptable for developing countries, NGOs, and civil societies, and is inadvisable for any future negotiations on investment rules. The substantive contents of the MAI which include the definition of investor and investment, treatment of foreign investors and investments, treatment for investment protection, and the dispute settlement mechanism are of high standards that render them unreachable and unacceptable for developing countries. The nine chapters of the book include: an introduction; An analysis of the background of the MAI negotiations which briefly reviews the process and results of the negotiations and makes the author's comments on the negotiations; an analysis and evaluation of the main features of MAI provisions and the approaches adopted by the MAI; An exploration of the scope of application of the MAI through the analysis of the respective definition of investor and investment in the MAI, and points out that the purpose of broad definition is to broaden the MAI's scope of application; An analysis and comment on the MAI's general principles of treatment accorded to foreign investors and their investments, and points out that the MAI's provisions in this regard have negative impacts on developing countries; An introduction to the MAI's specific rules of treatment accorded to foreign investors and their investments in such new areas of international investment as performance requirements, investment incentives, key personnel, privatization, as well as monopoly, state enterprises and concessions. There is also: an analysis and commentary on the MAI's treatment provisions on investment protection, that is, the fair and equitable treatment and full and constant protection and security treatment as the general treatment, and the specific treatment with regard to expropriation and compensation, protection from strife and transfers; an introduction to and evaluation of the MAI's dispute settlement mechanism: the state-state procedure and the investor-state procedure, and; a conclusion.

With the creation of a single global market in financial services, the effective regulation of banks at the international level has become essential. This work offers a comprehensive examination of the development and structure of the provisions for the control of international financial markets. It explores the background to the major financial crises of the late 20th-century and the nature of the global response, beginning with the collapse of the Bretton Woods system of managed exchange rates and the resulting establishment of the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision in 1974. The author describes the structure and operation of the Committee and examines both the content of its core supervisory papers and the development of its more general regulatory programme. The emergence of increasingly complex international banking and financial conglomerates has required a fundamental revision of the traditional sector-based methods of supervision and regulation. The book examines the difficulties associated with the cross-border and cross-sector regulation of such groups and assesses the international response to these problems. Financial crises in Asia and elsewhere during the late 1990s generated further anxiety concerning the stability of the international financial market place. The causes of the crises are accordingly examined and the various responses adopted as part of an international financial architecture analysed in detail. This book addresses all the major factors involved in international banking supervision, conglomerate control and financial stability together in a single text. It should prove a useful reference and analytical tool for all those specializing in international banking and financial market control.

This year's volume of the "Comparative Law Yearbook of International Business" deals with the subject of Product Liability Law. This is a growing area, in which, manufacturers and suppliers are finding themselves more and more responsible for the quality of their products and for the consequences flowing from any defect therein. This book discusses a wide variety of topics, which come under the umbrella of product liability, ranging from liability for injuries caused by the use of asbestos and other toxic substances to the responsibility of air carriers in hijack situations. There is a growing amount of litigation throughout the world tackling the problems arising from the safety of products. These laws take into account the manufacturing process, the transportation, storage and delivery of goods, the intended use of products, their fitness for such purpose, and any warnings or instructions as to use given to consumers and end users. This publication also covers the question of jurisdiction in product-related litigation, particularly in crossborder transactions. In many instances, a plaintiff will attempt to bring his action in the United States, due to the large amount of damages, especially punitive damages, awarded there by juries in civil actions. Defendants, on the other hand, seek to counter this by raising issues such forum non conveniens. There also is the question of state versus federal jurisdiction within the United States, as well as a discussion focusing on the possible growth of federalism within the European Union and its impact upon product liability nationally and at a European level. A comparison of the divergent cultural attitudes towards property in China and the United States, including the different emphases placed upon the ownership and role of property in society, demonstrates the different views of product liability. Another aspect of defective goods dealt with here is liability for the recall of a dangerous product. There is a chain of responsibility stretching from the manufacturer, trough various levels of suppliers, to the final retailer of goods, which is obviously important when attempting to remove dangerous products from the market as quickly as possible, before they can cause widespread injury to consumers. This has been shown to be particularly relevant in cases involving automobiles and food products. Overall, therefore, Product Liability Law is a vital part of the general law protecting consumers, both on a national and international basis, which makes this book a very interesting and useful read for anyone involved in this area.

From modest beginnings in the early 1990's, a reform movement in the regulation of public procurement has mushroomed into a global imperative. Two fundamental values of international free trade policy--value for money and the deterrence of corruption--have brought intense scrutiny to bear on public procurement practices in nearly every country. Now international standards (notably those of the WTO and the EU) must be met if a trading nation is to take its place in the global markets. This collection of essays offers fifteen distinct views on the current status and trends in public procurement and its various aspects. From general discussion of setup, overcoming obstacles, ensuring transparency, and compliance with international rules to specific issues raised in economies as diverse as Kosovo, China, and the United States, "Public Procurement: The Continuing Revolution provides a great wealth of insight and information. Although the emphasis throughout is on legal issues, the contributors include not only lawyers but also economists and specialists in purchasing practice. In addition, this is the first book to note the relatively recent trend, in developed countries, toward a less prescriptive, more flexible approach to regulation in which a degree of transparency is sacrificed. The question of how this trend will affect international procurement regimes is perhaps the most viral and interesting aspect of current theory and practice in the field. "Public Procurement: The Continuing Revolution is of inestimable value not only to public procurement specialists, whatever their profession, but to a much wider audience who will recognise the decisive influence of this important economicactivity on the entire area embracing trade and even international relations. Most of these essays were originally presented as papers at an international conference hosted by the Public Procurement Research Group at the University of Nottingham in September 2001.

It aims to identify the reasons behind the approach toward international arbitration and the role that public policy plays in this regard. Although some previous scholarships have addressed the application of public policy exception in international arbitration, no study has provided a systematic and more in-depth analysis of the application of public policy exception as applied in the United States and Turkey. This book uses a comparative study approach to attempt to fill this lacuna.

This is a multidisciplinary volume comprising contributions from lawyers, scientists and policy makers on the globally significant issue of accessing biological, and ultimately genetic, resources for commercial and scientific purposes. This volume deals with a number of international instruments but emphasizes the Convention on Biological Diversity and considers the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture, the WTO Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights, the rights of Indigenous Peoples, as well as issues in bioprospecting, scientific and commercial development. Consideration of the issues is raised at national, regional and international levels but here the focus is primarily the unique Australian experience, thereby reflecting the larger international debates between the developed nations and the megadiverse developing nations.

This is an open access title available under the terms of a CC BY-NC-ND 3.0 International licence. It is free to read at Oxford Scholarship Online and offered as a free PDF download from OUP and selected open access locations. Comprehensively examining the legal effects of EU concluded treaties, this book provides a thorough analysis of this increasingly important and rapidly growing area of EU law. The EU has concluded more than 1000 treaties including recently its first human rights treaty (the UN Rights of Persons with Disability Convention). These agreements are regularly invoked in litigation in the Courts of the member states and before the EU courts in Luxembourg but their ramifications for the EU legal order and that of the member states remains underexplored. Through analysis of over 300 cases, the author finds evidence of a twin-track approach whereby the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) adopts a maximalist approach to Treaty enforcement where EU agreements are invoked in challenges to member state level action whilst largely insulating EU action from meaningful review vis-a-vis agreements. The book also reveals novel findings regarding the use of EU agreements in EU level litigation including: the types and which specific EU agreements (including the types of provisions) have arisen in litigation; the nature of the proceedings (preliminary rulings or direct actions) and the number of occasions in which they have been addressed in challenges to member state or EU action and the outcomes; who has been litigating (individuals, institutions, or member states) and which domestic courts have been referring questions to the CJEU. The significance of the judicial developments in this area are situated within the context of the domestic constitutional ramifications for member state legal orders thus revealing a neglected dimension in the constitutionalization debates which traditionally emphasized the ramifications of internal EU law for the domestic constitutional order without expressly accommodating the constitutional significance of this external category of EU law nor the different challenges that this poses domestically. This volume will serve as a reference point for future work in this area and will also be of assistance to EU law practitioners dealing with EU agreements.

The distribution of technology among enterprises and nations lies at the heart of international economic relations, affecting trade, investment, finance and economic policies, and is affected in turn by the political relations between nations. The need for effective transfer of technology to developing countries has acquired renewed urgency in recent years as production becomes increasingly knowledge-intensive and competition is determined more and more by the ability of enterprises to learn, to acquire and use knowledge, and to innovate. Access to knowledge has become key to economic success in the marketplace. This text discusses the background, objectives, approaches and progress achieved in the decade-long negotiations on an International Code of Conduct on the Transfer of Technology which took place under the aegis of UNCTAD. It examines the impact and continued relevance of the Code negotiations to subsequent policy and legislative instruments on international technology transfer, both at domestic and international levels, and identifies and examine emerging trends and negotiating agendas that will help to shape the future of international technological co-operation. The central question posed by the initiators of the Draft Code of Conduct is still relevant today - how can we facilitate a just and mutually beneficial system of technology flow in a world of rapid change and increasing gaps in the technological capability of developed and developing countries? The need for marginalized countries to access knowledge in order to learn, adjust and integrate effectively into the world economic system must be balanced with the vital need to reward inventors and innovators to ensure the continued generation of knowledge. It is these issues that will continue to dominate any future discussion on the international transfer of technology. This book will be a valuable work of reference on the evolution of international technological cooperation in the last quarter of the 20th century, as well as a useful guide to policymakers, scholars and international negotiators dealing with these and related issues of international economic cooperation.

This textbook examines the legal and regulatory approaches to digital assets and related technology taken by United States regulators. As cryptoassets and other blockchain applications mature, and regulatory authorities work hard to keep pace, Daniel Stabile, Kimberly Prior and Andrew Hinkes invite students to consider the legal approaches, challenges and tension points inherent in regulating these new products and systems. The authors explore the attempts to apply securities laws and money transmission regulation, the growth of smart contracts, the taxation of digital assets, and the intersection of digital assets and criminal law. This innovative and unique textbook features: Commentary and analysis by three leading attorneys engaged with the regulation of digital assets and blockchain technology, offering practical, real-world acumen A comprehensive overview of the origins, key features and mechanisms of blockchain technology, as well as a broad intimation of the divisive debates that will shape the future of digital assets, to guarantee a thorough introduction to the topic for students Excerpts of authorities and other materials from key regulators, including the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Commodities Futures Trade Commission, and the Internal Revenue Service, to add insight and nuance to classroom discussions. In this, the first textbook of its kind, students of law, business, or technology will find crucial insights into the law and regulation of blockchain and a comprehensive overview of significant public debates on the topic.

As the ultimate arbiter in the global trade regime, the dispute settlement system of the World Trade Organization (WTO) is a body whose workings should be known to business people and their counsel everywhere. Here is a book - reviewed for accuracy by the WTO but written independently - that provides an uncomplicated but thorough explanation of the system, its purpose, its rules, and the role it plays in the management of the international economy. Peter Gallagher, a former trade negotiator and a specialist in the Uruguay Round agreements, answers such questions as: what sort of disputes does the WTO deal with?; can business or citizens use the WTO dispute system?; is it possible to get a temporary injunction to stop some action?; how much does it cost a to bring a case?; how far can you keep on appealing a decision?; what processes does a Panel follow?; what does the Appellate Body review?; what process does the Appellate Body follow?; how does intervention by other parties affect a dispute? As a handy guide to "bringing a case" before the WTO, or responding to a case already in progress, this easy-to-use book should prove an ideal starting point for lawyers, business people, or government officials confronted with a disputable trade issue.

In the World Trade Organization regime, government procurement is largely excluded from the multilateral agreements. The "plurilateral" WTO Agreement on Government Procurement, with its challenging accession procedures and limited number of signatories, cannot be said to succeed in its efforts to liberalize this area of trade activity - more than 10 per cent of gross domestic product in most countries. This study investigates the special sensitivities of government procurement that have left major trade barriers intact despite the WTO mandate that has proven so effective in other areas. Professor Arrowsmith examines the following crucial factors in depth: why and how procurement practices create barriers to trade; the institutional structure for dealing with government procurement in the GATT/WTO system; the impact of relevant WTO law on national legal systems; the types of contracts and entities covered in the Agreement on Government Procurement; how the National Treatment principle and the Most Favored Nation obligation affect government procurement; rules of WTO contract award procedure and the controversy over their interpretation and revision; the free trade versus social and environmental issues question in the context of government procurement; and the monitoring and enforcement of WTO procurement rules. Throughout the presentation the author focuses on specific issues to illuminate the overall pattern of her legal analysis. For example, practical questions stemming from such activities as multi-phase tendering and electronic procurement are raised for special scrutiny. The legal literature of the WTO and its jurisprudence are frequently brought into Professor Arrowsmith's arguments.

Concentrating on international intellectual property law, this volume is a collection of works by current authors in the field. Their work is supplemented by numerous essays and notes prepared by the editors. The controlling provisions of the major treaties in the field are included in a comprehensive appendix. The editors have organized the book according to the theories underlying the protection of international intellectual property rights. For example, they have considered the historical and philosophical foundation of copyright protection in the context of the protection of culture and personality, while issues regarding compulsory licensing to ensure public use of certain forms of intellectual property have been illustrated by examples drawn from patent protection. The problem of "harmonization" is addressed through many diverse examples from intellectual property protection. And the closely-related field of the protection of cultural patrimony is also included.

Transnational corporations (TNCs) have moved to the forefront of regulatory governance both within states and in the international arena. The Research Handbook on Transnational Corporations provides expert background commentary and up-to-date insights into regulatory frameworks impacting on TNCs at global, industry and national levels. Written by global experts in their field, this unique collection of essays provides in-depth understanding of how the forces of globalisation affect the world's largest corporations, and how those corporations, in turn, shape globalisation. Comprehensive yet highly accessible, this is the first major work on the reciprocal impact of TNCs on regulatory processes. The Research Handbook provides guidance on how best to understand the rapidly evolving relationship between TNCs and the processes of treaty making, the formation of global industry standards and the processes of national law making and policy formation (with a focus on resource taxation). Global, industry and national-level case studies are used to explain the basic principles used to support state, private, and international regulatory programs. Delivering both theoretical and practical insights into the regulation of TNCs, this timely and authoritative Research Handbook will be of particular interest to policy makers, industry practitioners and lawyers. Students and academics will also find it to be an invaluable resource. Contributors include: R. Anderson, M. Bowman, L. Cata Backer, A. Chou, A. De Jonge, G. Gilligan, D. Gleeson, M.A. Gonzalez-Perez, V. Harper Ho, J.A. Kirshner, D. Kraal, L. Leonard, R. Lopert, M.E. Monasterio, P. Neuwelt, J. O'Brien, A. Ruhmkorf, R. Tomasic, M. Woersdoerfer