Sovereignty, the WTO, and Changing Fundamentals of International Law

This book, first published in 2006, examines how the assumptions of international law are being fundamentally altered by the forces of globalization.

John H. Jackson (Author)

9780521860079, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 27 March 2006

388 pages, 1 table
22.9 x 15.2 x 2.5 cm, 0.74 kg

'The book's account of the workings of the GATT/WTO is a magisterial overview of the field, and Jackson brings to the book an intimate knowledge of the working habits of the organization (or non-organization, in the case of the GATT) and a breadth of view that comes from decades of close attention to its work and to its successes and failures. It is for these virtues that most readers will go to this text. The observations on the theoretical implications and possibilities of the material with which Jackson deals are bonuses, lightening the text and opening up avenues for later exploration.' American Journal of International Economic Law

The last decade of the twentieth century and the first decade of the twenty-first century has been one of the most challenging periods for the generally accepted assumptions of international law. This book, first published in 2006, grapples with these long-held assumptions (such as the consent basis of international law norms, equality of nations, restrictive or text-based treaty interpretations and applications, the monopoly of internal national power, and non-interference), and how they are being fundamentally altered by the forces of globalization. It also examines the challenges facing the WTO as a component of international economic law, and how that field is inextricably linked to general international law.

Part I. Challenges to International Law Fundamental Assumptions: 1. Introduction: International law and international economic law in the interdependent world of the twenty-first century
2. The real world impinges on international law: exploring the challenges to the fundamental assumptions of international law and institutions
3. Sovereignty modern: a new approach to an outdated concept
Part II. The WTO: 4. The WTO as international organization: institutional evolution, structure and key problems
5. The WTO dispute settlement system
Part III. The Search for Solutions: 6. Policy, analytical approaches and thought experiments
7. Illustrative applications
8. Perspectives, implications, and some conclusions.

Subject Areas: International economic & trade law [LBBM], Public international law [LBB]