Friday, June 3, 2022

Mavroidis: The Sources of WTO Law and their Interpretation: Is the New OK, OK?

Petros C. Mavroidis
(Columbia Univ. - Law) has published The Sources of WTO Law and their Interpretation: Is the New OK, OK? (Edward Elgar Publishing 2022). Here's the abstract:

In this incisive book, Petros C. Mavroidis examines the complex practice of interpreting the various sources of World Trade Organization (WTO) law. Written by a leading expert in WTO scholarship, the book serves as a broad grounding in the legal theory of the WTO contract and its sources, as well as its application in practice.

Delving into the workings of the Vienna Convention of the Law of Treaties (VCLT) and its use within the WTO courts, the author provides a critical assessment of the interpretation of the WTO contract and illuminates the role of WTO adjudicators and the Secretariat in clarifying obligations. Mavroidis then explores the uncertainty and distortion that emerge as a result of the discretion from adjudicators invited by the VCLT, explaining why this matters and offering steps towards resolving these issues.