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The WTO Agreements: The Marrakesh Agreement Establishing the World Trade Organization and its Annexes
by World Trade OrganizationThis publication contains the text of the WTO's founding agreement, the 1994 Marrakesh Agreement Establishing the World Trade Organization, and its Annexes, including all amendments and additions since its entry into force until September 2017. <P><P>These include an amendment to the WTO's intellectual property agreement (TRIPS Agreement) aimed at improving developing countries' access to medicines, the WTO's Trade Facilitation Agreement, which entered into force in February 2017, an amendment adopted in July 2017 to extend the frequency of peer review periods under the Trade Policy Review Mechanism as of 2019, and the amended Government Procurement Agreement. <P>This publication updates and replaces The Legal Texts: The Results of the Uruguay Round of Multilateral Trade Negotiations, which was first printed in 1994. <P>Includes the complete and official texts of the WTO agreements in one collection.<P> Provides an indispensable guide to all WTO trade-related negotiations.<P> Updates and replaces The Legal Texts: The Results of the Uruguay Round of Multilateral Trade Negotiations (1994).
The WTO, Agriculture and Sustainable Development
by Heinrich Wohlmeyer Theodor QuendlerDespite the Doha declaration of November 2001, the failure to start a new round of global trade negotiations at Seattle in December 1999 and the hostility of protesters to the trade liberalization process and growing global economic and social disparities was a wake-up call for the World Trade Organisation (WTO). The ambitious goal of this ground-breaking book is to identify the strengths and weaknesses of liberalized world trade, in particular in the agricultural sector, and to investigate to what extent the current WTO agreements provide the necessary fail-safe devices to react to trade-related negative impacts on sustainability, environmental protection and food security. The background and interrelationship between the WTO, the tenets of sustainable development and the unique features of the agriculture and forestry sectors are explored, and conclusions regarding the deficits of the world trade system and its conflicts with basic societal goals – such as sustainability – are drawn. Agriculture and forestry have a particular affinity with what the authors call "strong sustainability" and are to be among the major agenda items in forthcoming WTO negotiations. The book proposes that sustainable agricultural production techniques such as integrated and organic farming provide a series of related services to community and environment which could be severely prejudiced by wholesale trade liberalization and the imposition of the large-scale production methods of the mega-trade giants of the USA and Europe. And yet the concept of sustainability is referred to only tangentially in the existing WTO agenda. The WTO, Agriculture and Sustainable Development argues that, without a formal recognition of this failing, the premise that free trade is inherently advantageous for all countries is a falsehood. Further, unfettered liberalization is unsustainable and a social and environmental multilateral framework must be agreed to reinterpret or adapt a host of WTO regulations that are at odds with sustainable development. The core problem is that, under the current system, import duties can only be differentiated by direct goods and services and not by their means of production – sustainable or otherwise. Therefore, a range of environmental policy measures in the agricultural sector, such as the consideration of product life-cycles, the internalization of external costs and a coupling of trade liberalization with ecological obligations are proposed by the authors. In addition, they argue that unsustainable economic short-termism must be curbed and the use of the stick of trade sanctions and the carrot of financial benefits for good environmental performance be permitted to promote sustainable agricultural practices. This book will contribute greatly in addressing the lack of basic theoretical arguments at the intersection between trade and sustainable development – a failing that has already been bemoaned by trade policy-makers. It is highly recommended reading for all those involved or interested in the WTO negotiations, whether from multilateral organizations, governments, industry or civil society.
WTO Analytical Index
by Legal Affairs Division World Trade OrganizationThe WTO Analytical Index is a comprehensive guide to the interpretation and application of the WTO Agreements by the Appellate Body, dispute settlement panels and other WTO bodies. It contains extracts of key pronouncements and findings from tens of thousands of pages of WTO jurisprudence, including panel reports, Appellate Body reports, Article 21.3(c) awards and Article 22.6 decisions. This unique work will be of assistance to anyone working in the field of WTO law, including lawyers, economists, academics and students. It is produced by the Legal Affairs Division of the WTO Secretariat with contributions from other divisions of the Secretariat and the Appellate Body Secretariat. The third edition of the WTO Analytical Index covers developments in WTO law and practice over the period January 1995 to September 2011.
The WTO and Infant Industry Promotion in Developing Countries: Perspectives on the Chinese Large Civil Aircraft (Routledge Research in International Economic Law)
by Juan HeThe charter of the World Trade Organization (WTO) sets the tone that sustainable trade and economic development dominates multilateral trade negotiation and specific working agreements. This book examines the novel challenge for developing countries to upgrade and optimize their industrial structure and trade composition by stimulating genuinely innovative and competitive industrial strength. The book specifically explores the issue of infant industry promotion under the legal framework of the WTO treaties and case law. Taking the regulatory measures and incentives China has used to build up a large civil aircraft supplier, the book evaluates the key trade agreements relevant to infant industry promotional policies and practices, such as product regulations and standards under the 'Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade', and export promotion policies under the 'Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures'. Juan He argues that the regulatory room prescribed by the multilateral trade rules of the WTO does not allow adequate space for developing countries to encourage new and technologically advanced areas of production and trade. The author concludes by suggesting ways in which WTO rules could be modified to help enable developing countries’ industrialization. In doing so, the book highlights a need to investigate how localized and international policy trends can be reconciled and enhanced towards the common goal of development. The book will be of great interest to scholars and students of international trade law, Chinese studies, international political economy, and of great use to government agencies responsible for internal trade and industrial policy decisions.
The WTO and International Investment Law Converging Systems (Cambridge International Trade and Economic Law)
by Jürgen KurtzInternational law has historically regulated foreign trade and foreign investment differently. Distinct evolutionary pathways have led to variances in treaty form, institutional culture, and dispute settlement. With their inevitable erosion through the late twentieth to early twenty-first centuries, those weak boundaries have become porous and indefensible. Powerful economic, legal and sociological factors are now pushing the two systems together. In this book, Jürgen Kurtz systematically explores the often complex and little-understood dynamics of this convergence phenomenon. Kurtz addresses the growing connections between international trade and investment law, proposing a theoretically grounded and doctrinally tractable framework to understand the deepening relationship between them. The book also offers reform ideas and possibilities, providing treaty negotiators and other government officials with a set of theoretical insights and doctrinal models that can guide actors in building a justifiable and sustainable level of commonality between the two legal systems. Proposes a new understanding of the relationship between international trade and investment law Offers theoretical justifications for levels of convergence between the two regimes and expands the potential readership base beyond law to other disciplinary areas Identifies vectors by which both legal regimes may achieve systemic maturation and will appeal to treaty negotiators and policy makers who are seeking to reform both systems
The WTO and the Environment: Development of competence beyond trade (Routledge Research in International Economic Law)
by James WatsonThis book is a review of the development of the WTO dispute resolution procedure and the power and influence it has gained over the practises of the member countries as well as in other international treaties. The book addresses the development of environmental competency in the WTO and examines the arguments of those who oppose WTO rule making with impacts on the environment. The WTO’s interactions with multilateral environmental agreements are considered and recent WTO cases including the 2011 US/Mexico tuna dispute and the US sea turtles decision are analysed in detail. In examining how an international organisation which was established with a specific purpose in mind has come to interact in fields beyond its original remit, James Watson demonstrates how the dispute resolution system at the WTO has come to work in a judicialised manner, operating with an informal system of precedent. This has led to the contracting parties placing more reliance on the decisions of the dispute panels and appeal body when considering policy options, with WTO rulings increasingly influencing the behaviour of national legislatures in regard to the environment. The book goes on to make concrete recommendations, based on existing practise in the WTO dispute resolution procedure, which could enhance decision making in environmental cases heard by the WTO. The book argues that this could be achieved with straightforward amendments to the WTO, based on existing practices endorsed under the WTO for other policy considerations. The WTO and the Environment will be of particular interest to academics and students of International and Environmental law.
The WTO and the New Generation EU FTA Dispute Settlement Mechanisms: Interacting in a Fragmented and Changing International Trade Law Regime (European Yearbook of International Economic Law #19)
by Cornelia FurculițăThis book explores interactions between the new generation EU FTA and the WTO dispute settlement mechanisms, adopting an innovative, comprehensive approach. It investigates how the mechanisms potentially could and actually do compete, conflict, and cooperate, focusing not only on the potential negative consequences of fragmentation, but also on how synergies could be enhanced. Thus, unlike the existing literature, which chiefly focuses on conflicting interactions, it considers positive and negative interactions alike. Moreover, the book explores the topic in light of the most recent changes in and challenges to the international trade law regime. Particular attention is paid to how the multilateral and bilateral mechanisms studied interact with regard to the current WTO dispute settlement crisis and the EU-backed multi-party interim appeal arbitration arrangement. Thus, the book provides up-to-date answers to compelling questions. It also examines in detail the new generation EU FTA dispute settlement mechanisms, an aspect which has not been the subject of thorough research to date.The book pursues an interdisciplinary approach, combining legal methodology, international relations and political science theories with interviews. Given its scope, the book will appeal to researchers and scholars whose work involves international trade law issues. However, it will also be of interest to general international law academics, as it touches upon such issues as fragmentation, forum shopping, and general rules of interpretation. Furthermore, by analysing and presenting proposals with regard to the new generation EU FTAs, it will also be pertinent to the work of EU policymakers and researchers studying EU trade law.
The WTO Anti-Dumping Agreement: A Detailed Commentary
by Philippe De Baere Clotilde du Parc Isabelle Van DammeA unique article-by-article commentary on the WTO Anti-Dumping Agreement, offering an essential and comprehensive insight into WTO case-law. This commentary is an indispensable reference tool for government officials, practitioners and academics working on anti-dumping issues. The commentary's structure allows the reader to identify immediately which disputes are relevant for the interpretation of each provision. It offers a clear analysis of the applicable rules and a comprehensive explanation of what, as a result of the WTO case-law, those rules mean. This commentary has been written by practitioners who have all been directly involved in a large number of WTO disputes and who have extensive experience in anti-dumping investigations and in challenging anti-dumping determinations before the WTO and before national courts.
WTO Disciplines on Agricultural Support
by David Blandford David Orden Tim JoslingFarm support is contentious in international negotiations. This in-depth assessment of the legal compliance and economic evaluation issues raised by the WTO Agreement on Agriculture presents consistent support data and forward-looking projections for eight developed and developing countries (EU, US, Japan, Norway, Brazil, China, India, Philippines), using original estimates where official notifications are not available. Variations over time in notified support in some cases reflect real policy changes; others merely reflect shifts in how countries represent their measures. The stalled Doha negotiations presage significantly tighter constraints for developed countries that provide the highest support, but loopholes will persist. Developing countries face fewer constraints and their trade-distorting farm support can rise. Pressure points and key remaining issues if a Doha agreement is reached are evaluated. Vigilant monitoring for compliance of farm support with WTO commitments will be required to lessen its negative consequences whether or not the Doha Round is concluded.
WTO Disciplines on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures
by Dominic CoppensDoes the WTO leave appropriate policy space to its Members to pursue legitimate objectives, such as the economic development of developing countries, the conversion to a greener economy, or recovery in times of a global economic downturn? This legal and normative analysis of the WTO rules on subsidies and countervailing measures sheds light on why governments resort to subsidization and, by tracing the historical origins of the SCM Agreement and the Agreement on Agriculture, on why they have been willing to gradually confine their policy space. This sets the stage for a systematic and comprehensive legal analysis of both agreements, which integrates the vast amount of case law and proposals tabled in the Doha round. A separate case study explores the complex rules on export credit support, and the book closes with an in-depth normative assessment of these WTO rules on subsidies and countervailing measures.
WTO Dispute Settlement at Twenty
by Abhijit Das James J. NedumparaThis book focuses on India's participation in the WTO dispute settlement system, at a time when India has emerged as one of the most successful and prominent users of WTO dispute settlement among the developing countries. It offers a unique collection of perspectives from insiders - legal practitioners, policymakers, industry representatives and academics - on India's participation in the system since its creation in 1995. Presenting in-depth analyses of substantive issues, the book shares rare insights into the jurisprudential significance, political economy contexts and capacity-building challenges faced by India. It closely examines India's approach in effectively participating in the WTO's dispute settlement mechanism including the framing of litigation strategies, developing legal and stakeholder infrastructure, implementing dispute settlement decisions, and the impacts of the findings of the WTO panels / Appellate Body on domestic policymaking and India's long-term trade interests. In addition to discussing the key "classic" jurisprudential issues, the book also explores domestic regulatory and policy issues, complemented by selected case studies.
The WTO Dispute Settlement Mechanism: A Developing Country Perspective
by Alberto do Amaral Júnior Luciana Maria de Oliveira Sá Pires Cristiane Lucena CarneiroThis book offers a multidisciplinary approach to the Dispute Settlement Mechanism (DSM) by bringing together contributions from legal scholars and political scientists. Most of the authors belong to a tightly knit legal epistemic community, trained at the University of São Paulo and at the top-ranked research and policy centers on WTO law in Europe.Presenting a novel and unique perspective on the DSM, it provides an analysis of current themes at the heart of the WTO Dispute Settlement Mechanism through the lenses of scholars with a “developing country” perspective.Focusing on assessment, substance, and process, it presents a three-fold approach to the analysis and offers a singular contribution to the scholarly literature on the WTO. The book discusses the topic from the viewpoint of individuals deeply involved in the scholarly production as well as the daily operation of the mechanism. The contributors include academics in the fields of international economic law and political science, diplomats, individuals engaged in legal private practice, and individuals affiliated with the WTO as well as WTO-related think tanks. The result is a balanced perspective on pressing issues that have arisen and that are likely to remain at the center of the scholarly and policy debate for years to come.
The Wto Dispute Settlement Procedures
by World Trade OrganizationThe third edition of The WTO Dispute Settlement Procedures collects together the treaty texts, decisions and agreed practices relating to the procedures that apply in the settlement of WTO disputes. It affords ready answers to technical questions relating to matters such as: how disputes are initiated and conducted, including at the appellate stage; what deadlines apply and how to calculate them; what rules of conduct bind individuals involved in WTO dispute settlement; and what rules of procedure apply to meetings of the Dispute Settlement Body. This highly practical work, which includes cross-references and a subject index, will prove invaluable to anyone working in WTO dispute settlement, including lawyers, civil servants working in the field of trade, economists, academics and students. This edition has been fully updated to take account of revised rules and procedures.
WTO Domestic Regulation and Services Trade
by Aik Hoe Lim Bart De MeesterDomestic regulation of services sectors has a significant impact on services trade liberalization, which is why General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) disciplines are negotiated in the WTO. With the help of analyses and case-studies from academics, regulators and trade experts, this book explores the scope and limits of WTO legal principles to promote domestic regulatory reform. Case-studies discuss country-specific challenges and experiences of regulating important service sectors, such as finance, telecommunications, distribution, legal, education, health, postal and logistics services, as well as the role of regulatory impact assessments. The findings will interest trade officials, policy-makers, regulators, think tanks and businesses concerned with the implications of domestic regulation on access to services markets, and with the opportunities for formulating trade disciplines in this area. It is also a useful resource for academics and students researching regulatory approaches and practices in services sectors.
WTO Jurisprudence: Governments, Private Rights, and International Trade (Routledge Research in International Law)
by Wenwei GuanThis book offers a critical examination of the jurisprudence of the World Trade Organization (WTO) as an emancipatory international social contract on trade. The book suggests that the WTO is an international organization built and operating on member states’ attribution of authority through consent with legislative, administrative, and adjudicative functions – three functions in one triune personality. With a solid constitutional continuity building on GATT experiences, the WTO has successfully made governments accountable to foreign individuals in various capacities either as traders of goods, providers of services, or holders of intellectual property rights within the global marketplace. With a triune personality, the WTO operates within the reign of state primacy – the force – ultimately for the benefits of individuals – the ends – in the global marketplace, and gains a soul of its own in the institutional evolution – the means – of the global trading regime. Although the tripartite dynamics between states, international institutions, and individuals in the global marketplace are unprecedentedly complex, the WTO’s ends of benefiting individuals in the global marketplace has no end. Beyond the critical analysis of WTO’s decision-making by consensus, the book critically examines GATT’s "common intention" treaty interpretation, Antidumping’s NME methodology, TRIPS’ public health concerns, and IP-competition trade policy dynamics. A unified WTO jurisprudence looking at the WTO as an international social contract on trade is therefore proposed to allow a fresh look at the force, the means, and the ends of the constitutional evolution of the global trading regime.
WTO Law and Policy: A Political Economy Approach
by Jae SundaramWTO Law and Policy presents an authoritative account of the emergence of the World Trade Organization (WTO) and the basic principles and institutional law of the WTO. It explores how political economy has shaped the WTO’s legal philosophy and policies, and provides insights into how international trade law at the WTO has developed. This textbook examines the legal obligations of the Member States of the WTO under the multilateral trade agreements, the legal remedies available under the rules-based dispute settlement system, and incorporates the most relevant case laws from WTO’s jurisprudence. It outlines several key contemporary issues which the WTO faces as well as areas that need reforming. Each chapter covers a specific topic in relation to the framework and functionality of the WTO, with particular focus on the legal aspects of the multilateral trade order. The book is guided by the legal pronouncements of the Dispute Settlement Body (Panels and Appellate Body), and the commentaries on the interpretation of the provisions of the covered agreements. This book is ideal for all students studying international trade law, including those coming to international law, international trade law, and WTO law for the first time.
The WTO Regime on Government Procurement: Challenge and Reform
by Sue Arrowsmith Robert D. AndersonOriginally an important but relatively obscure plurilateral instrument, the WTO Agreement on Government Procurement (GPA) is now becoming a pillar of the WTO system as a result of important developments since the Uruguay Round. This collection examines the issues and challenges that this raises for the GPA, as well as future prospects for addressing government procurement at a multilateral level. Coverage includes issues relating to pending accessions to the GPA, particularly those of developing countries with a large state sector such as China; the revised (provisionally agreed) GPA text of 2006, including provisions on electronic procurement and Special and Differential Treatment for Developing Countries; and procurement provisions in regional trade agreements and their significance for the multilateral system. Attention is also given to emerging issues, especially those concerning environmental, social and SME policy; competition law; and the implications of the recent economic crisis.
WTO Security Exceptions in Practice and Scholarship: Curtailing “Trump Cards” through Proportionality (SpringerBriefs in Law)
by Erich VranesThis book offers an in-depth analysis of the WTO security exceptions and relevant rulings by WTO dispute settlement panels. The WTO security exceptions are commonly regarded as the "box of Pandora" of the WTO system, since WTO Member States can invoke them in order to justify trade restrictions violating WTO law which they consider necessary for their essential security interests. The Members of the WTO and the GATT 1947 have hesitated for decades to rely on these security exceptions. In recent years, however, these clauses have been invoked for the first time in high-profile disputes involving Russia and Ukraine, Saudi Arabia and Qatar, as well as the US, China, the EU and other nations. This has been regarded as the turn of an era in view of the risk that the security exceptions could be instrumentalized to undermine the WTO and the international economic governance system more generally. This study therefore thoroughly analyses the WTO panel reports issued in these landmark cases. It also explains the geopolitical relevance of the increasing invocation of security clauses and argues that the legally and methodologically sound application of the WTO security exceptions, which have often been regarded as “self-judging” provisions, requires a proportionality analysis encompassing tests of the suitability and necessity of the trade measures to be justified under these truly exceptional clauses.
WTO Trade Remedies in International Law: Their Role and Place in a Fragmented International Legal System (Routledge Research in International Economic Law)
by Roberto SopranoWorld Trade Organisation (WTO) trade remedies (antidumping, anti-subsidy and safeguard agreements) are instruments used by WTO members to counter the economic injury caused by dumping, subsidies and the sudden and unforeseen increased imports. They are exceptions to the WTO principle of free trade and to the prohibition for States to react unilaterally to protect their own rights and interests, and as a result they have been accused by some as being the new tools of protectionism. This book analyses of the role and principles of WTO trade remedies in international law. In particular, it focuses on their aims, their structure, and their position within the WTO and more in general, the international legal system. The book considers trade remedies in light of fragmentation theories of international law and addresses the question how, and to what extent WTO law reflects and influences public international law.
The WTO Transit Regime for Landlocked Countries and its Impacts on Members’ Regional Transit Agreements: The Case of Afghanistan’s Transit Trade with Pakistan (European Yearbook of International Economic Law #17)
by Suhailah AkbariThis book assesses Afghanistan’s transit trade with Pakistan in the context of WTO transit regime for landlocked countries and its impacts on Members’ regional transit agreements. The key questions this book seeks to answer are the extent Afghanistan can benefit from WTO transit rules in demanding freedom of transit through the territory of Pakistan, how these rules influence the transit agreement concluded between Afghanistan and Pakistan, and finally how useful it would be to challenge Pakistan under the WTO dispute settlement system for its failure to provide Afghanistan freedom of transit and free access to and from the sea.
The Wuhan Cover-Up: And the Terrifying Bioweapons Arms Race (Children’s Health Defense)
by Robert F. Kennedy Jr.&“RFK Jr. exposes the decades of lies.&”—Luc Montagnier, Nobel laureate From the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, USA Today, and Publishers Weekly bestselling author of The Real Anthony Fauci comes an explosive exposé of the cover-up behind the true origins of COVID-19. &“Gain-of-function&” experiments are often conducted to deliberately develop highly virulent, easily transmissible pathogens for the stated purpose of developing preemptive vaccines for animal viruses before they jump to humans. More insidious is the &“dual use&” nature of this research, specifically directed toward bioweapons development. The Wuhan Cover-Up pulls back the curtain on how the US government's increase in biosecurity spending after the 2001 terror attacks set in motion a plan to transform the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), under the direction of Dr. Anthony Fauci, into a de facto Defense Department agency. While Dr. Fauci zealously funded and pursued gain-of-function research, concern grew among some scientists and government officials about the potential for accidental or deliberate release of weaponized viruses from labs that might trigger worldwide pandemics. A moratorium was placed on this research, but true to form, Dr. Fauci found ways to continue unperturbed—outsourcing some of the most controversial experiments offshore to China and providing federal funding to Wuhan Institute of Virology's (WIV's) leading researchers for gain-of-function studies in partnership with the Chinese military and the Chinese Communist Party. Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s meticulously researched and rigorously sourced analysis leads readers on a staggering journey to learn about: the key enablers and henchmen pushing for gain-of-function research the economic motives behind gain-of-function research successfully engineered &“chimeric viruses&” that can infect and kill humans the coordinated effort to silence speculation of COVID-19&’s laboratory genesis the complicity of scientific journals to hide the origins of COVID-19 the role of the Wuhan Institute of Virology in China&’s biowarfare/biodefense program the relationships between US health, military, and intelligence bureaucracies and scientists and their Chinese counterparts the roles of Bill Gates and Sir Jeremy Farrar in orchestrating a global cover-up The Wuhan Cover-Up unveils a global conspiracy of epic proportion and lethal consequence.
Wyoming Legal Research
by Debora A. Person Tawnya K. PlumbThe second edition of Wyoming Legal Research maintains the same practical research techniques and solid focus on Wyoming resources as the first edition. <p><p>The text, geared towards students and members of the general public with little to no experience in researching legal issues, is also appropriate for practicing attorneys wishing to identify the most effective coverage among specific legal resources. <p><p>This edition updates searching capabilities within the latest platforms of major commercial legal databases Lexis and Westlaw, with added coverage of newer products such as Bloomberg Law and Casemaker. The text includes information regarding access to freely-available primary and secondary legal resources on the internet as well as Wyoming-specific web sites and treatises. It explores the administrative process more deeply and updates Wyoming and federal legislative history features within both commercial and free databases. <p><p>The chapter on citating options, commonly known as Shepardizing, has been rewritten, as has the legal citation chapter which now references the revised editions of The Bluebook and ALWD Citation Manual. Images and examples have been updated throughout. Wyoming Legal Research remains an essential text for learning and practicing legal research in the state.
Xenotransplantation: Law and Ethics (Routledge Revivals)
by Sheila A. McLeanOriginally published in 2005. One of the leading causes of death is organ failure, that is, when one or other of the organs that run the machine we call the body gives out. However, whereas with a machine spare parts can usually replace faulty parts, in the case of humans the supply of these is limited as it is dependent on organs being obtained from living or dead donors. Due to the limitations of supply, increasing attention is being paid to alternative schemes for obtaining organs. One of these possibilities is xenotransplantation: using organs from animals. In this book, the authors examine the legal and ethical issues surrounding xenotransplantation and consider the implications for the future. As they point out, xenotransplantation represents a major deviation from standard medical practice and the possibility of transplantation of large segments of tissue, or whole organs, from animals into humans poses an entirely novel set of considerations - ethical, legal and scientific - which it is necessary to evaluate and understand.
Xenotransplantation and Risk: Regulating a Developing Biotechnology
by Sara FovargueSome developing biotechnologies challenge accepted legal and ethical norms because of the risks they pose. Xenotransplantation (cross-species transplantation) may prolong life but may also harm the xeno-recipient and the public due to its potential to transmit infectious diseases. These trans-boundary diseases emphasise the global nature of advances in health care and highlight the difficulties of identifying, monitoring and regulating such risks and thereby protecting individual and public health. Xenotransplantation raises questions about how uncertainty and risk are understood and accepted, and exposes tensions between private benefit and public health. Where public health is at risk, a precautionary approach informed by the harm principle supports prioritising the latter, but the issues raised by genetically engineered solid organ xenotransplants have not, as yet, been sufficiently discussed. This must occur prior to their clinical introduction because of the necessary changes to accepted norms which are needed to appropriately safeguard individual and public health.