Equality Among Member States in International Dispute Settlement
On the one hand, the WTO was founded to promote equality among states regardless of their economic and political power. Moreover, the existence of a comprehensive multilateral mechanism for settling disputes aims to provide equity-related benefits for the organization’s developing countries as well.
In particular, all members are supposed to have equal access to decision-making. In this case, “any judicial law enforcement system benefits the weak more than the strong because the strong would always have other means to defend and impose their interests in the absence of a law enforcement system”. All in all, according to the WTO’s dispute settlement system, all member states have the same right to participate in proceedings and protect their interests within the framework of the law.
Influence of Superpower Countries on Developing Nations
At the same time, there are multiple evidence that the WTO’s members are formally equal entities, and in reality, the superpower countries have an intimidating influence on developing countries and dispute outcomes. According to Reich, there is a vast disproportion between the developed and least developed countries in the use of the dispute settlement system. While the former actively initiates most processes, the latter’s participation is minimal.
In particular, “for developing countries with limited resources and legal capacity, scholars have consistently noted that the institution and the dispute settlement mechanism within it remains beyond reach.” First, the high administrative and legal costs involved in the processes determine the need for more participation in low-income developing countries. Moreover, it may be explained by the lack of specialists in these states who can ensure the efficiency of involvement.
Finally, low-income countries consider the political costs of confrontation with developed countries, which may lead to negative consequences in other spheres. Therefore, it is possible to assume that the WTO is characterized by formal equality, while developed states have more authority and resources to protect their interests.
Bibliography
Konken, L., ‘Silence is Golden? Revisiting Third Party Participation in World Trade Organization Litigation’, (2018), 1-49. Web.
Reich, A., ‘The Effectiveness of the WTO Dispute Settlement System: A Statistical Analysis’, Transnational Commercial and Consumer Law: Current Trends in International Business Law, (2018), 1-43.
World Trade Organization, ‘Developing Countries in WTO Dispute Settlement’, World Trade Organization, 11.1 Developing Country Members in Dispute Settlement — Theory and Practice. Web.