Legal basis for a dispute

4.6 Disputes on Articles I to XVI of the WTO Agreement and the DSU

Articles I to XVI of the WTO Agreement and the DSU do not contain specific provisions concerning consultations and dispute settlement to deal with matters arising under the WTO Agreement itself (in the sense of Articles I to XVI) or the DSU itself. However, these two Agreements do fall within the category of “covered agreements”, as they are listed in Appendix 1 to the DSU. The second sentence of Article 1.1 of the DSU also provides specifically that the dispute settlement system applies to disputes under the WTO Agreement (in the sense of Articles I to XVI) and the DSU.

To date, there have been two cases in which a complainant has claimed a breach by a Member of a provision of the DSU, namely Article 23.1.¹ Moreover, one provision of the WTO Agreement (in the sense of Articles I to XVI), namely Article XVI:4, is a frequent basis for violation complaints.

Notes:

1. Panel Report, Section 301 Trade Act, Panel Report and Appellate Body Report, US — Certain EC Products   back to text