ISSN (Print) - 0012-9976 | ISSN (Online) - 2349-8846

Articles by Prabhash RanjanSubscribe to Prabhash Ranjan

Indian Investment Treaty Programme in the Light of Global Experiences

An exponential growth in bilateral investment treaties, accompanied by an increasing number of investor-state investment disputes has given rise to two global issues. One, the relationship between the number of such treaties and investment inflows, and two, concerns over the compromise of regulatory discretion due to obligations imposed. In the Indian context, the most important regulatory framework on foreign investment - the Press Note 2010 - does not even mention the standards contained in Indian BITs. This article makes a case to critically examine the Indian BIT programme in the light of these issues.

Applicable Law in the Dispute Settlement Body of the WTO

Since the formation of the Dispute Settlement Body of the World Trade Organisation, an interesting question in the context of settling trade disputes in the WTO is whether the legal process is limited to WTO law, or, can the entire body of public international law be used. This article endeavours to answer this question by providing a critique of certain issues raised by Joost Pauwelyn, who argues that the entire body of public international law is applicable for the DSB.

Choosing the Appropriate Tariff Reduction Formula in NAMA

Many have interpreted the adoption of a "Swiss formula with coefficients" in the non-agricultural market access negotiations at the WTOâ??s Hong Kong ministerial as an acceptance of the "dirty" Swiss formula, which cuts industrial tariffs steeply and higher rates even more drastically. This is, however, not true, as a distinction needs to be made between a Swiss formula and a modified Swiss formula. The coefficients of the formula should be such that "less than full reciprocity" in reduction commitments is really honoured. Examples are provided here to demonstrate which formula might best fulfil this criterion.

GSP: Still Open to Political Use

The WTO Appellate Body's ruling on the drug regime in the Generalised System of Preferences was intended to build a jurisprudence aimed at restoring the lost significance of the GSP programme. But it seems that this plan is not working on the ground. European Community, for instance, has shown that by restructuring its GSP it can still pursue its national objectives and policies through this programme.

International Predation and Anti-dumping

Can international predatory pricing be dealt with under the WTO framework, outside of an anti-trust regime? If predation is taking place in the form of dumping, as understood in GATT/WTO, it can be tackled under the Anti-Dumping Agreement; otherwise it can be addressed under the safeguards agreement.

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