Broadening the Vision of Trade Liberalisation; International Competition Law and the WTO

Abstract

This article begins by examining competition law and trade liberalisation as promoted by international trade law, and the common policies that inform them. It goes on to consider the points of intersection between competition and trade law, highlighting the problems arising from the current system of national competition laws in the context of trade liberalisation. It suggests that international competition law could solve some of these problems, although previous attempts to implement such a regime have proved unsuccessful on the whole. It then considers the possibility of creating international competition laws within the World Trade Organization (WTO) framework, which already includes some competition law elements. The article argues that international competition law under the WTO could provide a meaningful solution to some current trade/competition conflicts, although theoretical and practical obstacles require a modest beginning concentrating on substantive principles about which there is widespread consensus. "The issue is not whether competition policy questions will be dealt with in the WTO context, but how and, in particular, how coherent will the framework be within which this will be done".