Argentina's experience with WTO dispute settlement: development of national capacity and the use of in-house lawyers

Abstract

Introduction Upon completion of the Uruguay Round negotiations and the establishment of the World Trade Organization (WTO) in 1995, Argentina was confronted with an increased number of complaints compared to those filed under the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT). Under the GATT, Argentina's level of involvement in dispute settlement procedures was modest. Under the WTO, in contrast, the situation changed radically, with Argentina being engaged in forty-four panel and Appellate Body proceedings by the end of 2005. This figure, if compared with the total number of complaints among WTO Members, approximately 360, represents an impressive performance in terms of use of the Dispute Settlement Understanding (DSU), constituting twelve percent of the total during this period. while there has been an increase in use of the WTO dispute settlement mechanism (DSM) among many members, few countries have experienced such an intense level of challenges as soon as the new rules came into force. Argentina was a respondent or complainant in twelve percent of all WTO complaints, while its share of world trade (exports plus imports) was only 0.3 percent in 2006. With such a relatively low stake in world trade, what could be the reason for its high percentage use of the WTO DSM which was forty times greater? Whatever the answer to this question, this litigation experience, particularly in the early WTO years, forced a discussion among agencies responsible for WTO affairs in Argentina on adequate responses.