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Flexibilities in WTO Law to Support Tobacco Control Regulation

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  06 January 2021

Tania Voon
Tania Voon*
Affiliation:
Melbourne Law School, The University of Melbourne; World Trade Organization [WTO]. Email tania.voon@unimelb.edu.au
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Extract

Cases concerning the regulation of tobacco have long existed within the World Trade Organization (WTO) and its predecessor, the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 1947 (GATT 1947), although often these cases have not centered on the detrimental health impact of tobacco products. With the 2012 circulation of the Report of the WTO Appellate Body in U.S.—Clove Cigarettes, the potential friction between international trade law and tobacco regulation in the context of public health has come to the fore. In that Report, the Appellate Body found in part against the United States’ flavored cigarette ban. Combined with the ongoing WTO challenges to mandatory plain tobacco packaging in Australia—Tobacco Plain Packaging, governments might begin to fear that the WTO agreements represent an insurmountable barrier to ambitious tobacco control measures. However, careful examination of the Clove Cigarettes case alongside the two other recent Appellate Body Reports (U.S.—Tuna II (Mexico)5 and U.S.—COOL6) on the WTO's Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT Agreement)7 demonstrates that the TBT Agreement has ample flexibility to accommodate health objectives underlying tobacco regulation.

Type
Article
Information
American Journal of Law & Medicine , Volume 39 , Issue 2-3 , June 2013 , pp. 199 - 217
Copyright
Copyright © American Society of Law, Medicine and Ethics and Boston University 2013

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References

1 General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade, Oct. 30, 1947, 61 Stat. A-11, 55 U.N.T.S. 194 [hereinafter GATT 1947].

2 Appellate Body Report, United States—Measures Affecting the Production and Sale of Clove Cigarettes, WT/DS406/AB/R (Apr. 4, 2012) [hereinafter Appellate Body Report, Clove Cigarettes]; Panel Report, United States—Clove Cigarettes, WT/DS406/R (Sept. 2, 2011) [hereinafter Panel Report, Clove Cigarettes].

3 Appellate Body Report, Clove Cigarettes, supra note 2, ¶¶ 222-226.

4 Request for the Establishment of a Panel by Ukraine, Australia—Certain Measures Concerning Trademarks and Other Plain Packaging Requirements Applicable to Tobacco Products and Packaging, WT/DS434/11 (Aug. 17, 2012) [hereinafter Panel Request by Ukraine, Plain Packaging]; see also Request for the Establishment of a Panel by Honduras, Australia—Certain Measures Concerning Trademarks, Geographical Indications and Other Plain Packaging Requirements Applicable to Tobacco Products and Packaging, WT/DS435/16 (Oct. 17, 2012) [hereinafter Panel Request by Honduras, Plain Packaging]; see also Request for the Establishment of a Panel by the Dominican Republic, Australia—Certain Measures Concerning Trademarks, Geographical Indications and Other Plain Packaging Requirements Applicable to Tobacco Products and Packaging, WT/DS441/15 (Nov. 14, 2012) [hereinafter Panel Request by the Dominican Republic, Plain Packaging].

5 Appellate Body Report, United States—Measures Concerning the Importation, Marketing and Sale of Tuna and Tuna Products, WT/DS381/AB/R (May 16, 2012) [hereinafter Appellate Body Report, Tuna]; Panel Report, United States—Measures Concerning the Importation, Marketing and Sale of Tuna and Tuna Products, WT/DS381/R (Sept. 15, 2011).

6 Appellate Body Reports, United States—Certain Country of Origin Labelling (COOL) Requirements, WT/DS384/AB/R, WT/DS386/AB/R (Jun. 29, 2012) [hereinafter Appellate Body Reports, COOL]; Panel Reports, United States—Certain Country of Origin Labelling (COOL) Requirements, WT/DS384/R, WT/DS386/R (Nov. 18, 2011).

7 Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade, Apr. 15, 1994, Marrakesh Agreement Establishing the World Trade Organization, Annex 1A, 1868 U.N.T.S. 120 [hereinafter TBT Agreement].

8 General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 1994, Apr. 15, 1994, Marrakesh Agreement Establishing the World Trade Organization, Annex 1A, 1867 U.N.T.S. 190 [hereinafter GATT 1994].

9 Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights, Apr. 15, 1994, Marrakesh Agreement Establishing the World Trade Organization, Annex 1C, 1869 U.N.T.S. 299 [hereinafter TRIPS Agreement].

10 GATT 1994, supra note 8, ¶ 1(a); see also GATT 1947, supra note 1, at art. XX(b).

11 WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, opened for signature June 16, 2003, 2302 U.N.T.S. 166 [hereinafter WHO FCTC].

12 General Agreement on Trade in Services, Apr. 15, 1994, Marrakesh Agreement Establishing the World Trade Organization, Annex 1B, 1869 U.N.T.S. 183 [hereinafter GATS].

13 Panel Report, United States–Measures Affecting the Importation, Internal Sale and Use of Tobacco, ¶¶ 12-46, DS44/R (Aug. 12, 1994).

14 Panel Report, Thailand—Restrictions on Importation of and Internal Taxes on Cigarettes, ¶¶ 6, 63, DS10/R-37S/200 (Oct. 5, 1990) (GATT) [hereinafter Panel Report, Thailand—Restrictions].

15 Id. ¶ 67.

16 GATT 1947, supra note 1, ¶¶ 16-20.

17 See GATT 1994, supra note 8, ¶ 1(a); see also GATT 1947, supra note 1, at art. XI.

18 Panel Report, Thailand—Restrictions, supra note 14, ¶ 73.

19 See id. ¶ 81.

20 See id. ¶¶ 78-79.

21 See id. ¶¶ 3, 50.

22 See Appellate Body Report, Dominican Republic—Measures Affecting the Importation and Internal Sale of Cigarettes, ¶¶ 1-6, 21-22, WT/DS302/AB/R (Apr. 25, 2005); Panel Report, Dominican Republic—Measures Affecting the Importation and Internal Sale of Cigarettes, ¶¶ 8.1-8.3 WT/DS302/R [hereinafter Panel Report, Dominican Republic Cigarettes]; Appellate Body Report, Thailand—Customs and Fiscal Measures on Cigarettes from the Philippines, WT/DS371/AB/R (June 17, 2011); Panel Report, Thailand—Customs and Fiscal Measures on Cigarettes from the Philippines, WT/DS371/R (Nov. 15, 2010).

23 Panel Report, Clove Cigarettes, supra note 2, ¶ 7.1.

24 Id. ¶ 7.432.

25 See Appellate Body Report, Clove Cigarettes, supra note 2, ¶ 298; see also infra Part V.B.

26 Appellate Body Report, Clove Cigarettes, supra note 2, ¶ 224. For further discussion of this case, see Voon, Tania, United States—Measures Affecting the Production and Sale of Clove Cigarettes, 106 AM. J. INT'L L. 824 (2012)Google Scholar.

27 Panel Report, Clove Cigarettes, supra note 2, ¶ 7.57.

28 Appellate Body Report, Clove Cigarettes, supra note 2, ¶ 225.

29 Statements by the United States at the April 24, 2012, DSB Meeting, US MISSION GENEVA, http://geneva.usmission.gov/2012/04/25/statements-by-the-united-states-at-the-april-24-2012-dsb-meeting/ (last visited Mar. 31, 2013).

30 FDA, TOBACCO PRODS. SCIENTIFIC ADVISORY COMM., MENTHOL CIGARETTES AND PUBLIC HEALTH: REVIEW OF THE SCIENTIFIC EVIDENCE AND RECOMMENDATIONS 225 (2011), available at http://www.fda.gov/downloads/AdvisoryCommittees/CommitteesMeetingMaterials/TobaccoProductsScientificAdvisoryCommittee/UCM269697.pdf.

31 Panel Report, Clove Cigarettes, supra note 2, ¶ 7.57.

32 Panel Request by Ukraine, Plain Packaging, supra note 4; Panel Request by Honduras, Plain Packaging, supra note 4; Panel Request by the Dominican Republic, Plain Packaging, supra note 4.

33 See Tobacco Plain Packaging Act 2011 (Cth) (Austl.).

34 Id. s 19(2)(b)(ii).

35 Competition and Consumer (Tobacco) Information Standard 2011 (Cth) ss 9.13(1), 9.19(1) (Austl.); see Tobacco Plain Packaging Regulations 2011 (Cth) regs 2.2.1(2), 2.3.4(1) (Austl.).

36 See Kelsey, Jane, The Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement: A Gold-Plated Gift to the Global Tobacco Industry?, 39 AM. J.L. & MED. 237, 253-58 (2013)Google Scholar; Liberman, Jonathan, Plainly Constitutional: The Upholding of Plain Tobacco Packaging by the High Court of Australia, 39 AM. J.L. & MED. 361 (2013)Google Scholar.

37 See Voon, Tania & Mitchell, Andrew, Implications of WTO Law for Plain Packaging of Tobacco Products, in PUBLIC HEALTH AND PLAIN PACKAGING OF CIGARETTES 109 (Voon, Tania et al. eds., 2012)Google Scholar.

38 See Panel Report, Thailand—Restrictions, supra note 14, ¶ 50.

39 Appellate Body Report, Clove Cigarettes, supra note 2, ¶ 11.

40 WHO FCTC, supra note 11, at 166.

41 Panel Report, Dominican Republic Cigarettes, supra note 22, ¶ 7.216.

42 Panel Report, Clove Cigarettes, supra note 2, ¶ 7.1.

43 Id. ¶ 7.5.

44 Tobacco Plain Packaging Act 2011 (Cth) s 3(1)(b) (Austl.).

45 Panel Report, Clove Cigarettes, supra note 2, ¶ 2.29.

46 See Parties to the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, WHO, http://www.who.int/fctc/signatories_parties/en/index.html (last updated Dec. 7, 2012).

47 Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties art. 31(3)(c), May 23, 1969, 1155 U.N.T.S. 331.

48 See Report of the Study Group of the Int’l Law Comm’n, Fragmentation of International Law: Difficulties Arising from the Diversification and Expansion of International Law, ¶ 472, A/CN.4/L.682 (Apr. 13, 2006) (finalized by Martti Koskenniemi).

49 Panel Reports, European Communities—Measures Affecting the Approval and Marketing of Biotech Products, ¶ 7.68, WT/DS291/R, WT/DS292/R, WT/DS293/R (Sept. 29, 2006) [hereinafter Panel Reports, Biotech Products].

50 Appellate Body Report, European Communities and Certain Member States—Measures Affecting Trade in Large Civil Aircraft, ¶¶ 846, 855, WT/DS316/AB/R (May 18, 2011).

51 Id. ¶ 845.

52 Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties, supra note 47, at art. 31(1) (emphasis added).

53 See, e.g., Appellate Body Report, United States—Import Prohibition of Certain Shrimp and Shrimp Products, ¶¶ 132, 167-69, WT/DS58/AB/R (Oct. 12, 1998) [hereinafter Appellate Body Report, Shrimp]; see Appellate Body Report, European Communities—Conditions for the Granting of Tariff Preferences to Developing Countries, ¶ 163, WT/DS246/AB/R (Apr. 7, 2004); see also TANIA VOON, CULTURAL PRODUCTS AND THE WORLD TRADE ORGANIZATION 130-34 (2007).

54 Panel Reports, Biotech Products, supra note 49, ¶ 7.94.

55 See GATT 1994, supra note 8, ¶ 1(a); see also GATT 1947, supra note 1, at arts. XI(1), II(1)(a).

56 See GATT 1994, supra note 8, ¶ 1(a); see also GATT 1947, supra note 1, at arts. I, III.

57 See infra Part V.B.

58 See GATT 1994, supra note 8, ¶ 1(a); see also GATT 1947, supra note 1, at art. XX.

59 See GATT 1994, supra note 8, ¶ 1(a); see also GATT 1947, supra note 1, at art. XX.

60 See Appellate Body Report, Shrimp, supra note 53, ¶¶ 118-119.

61 See GATT 1994, supra note 8, ¶ 1(a); see also GATT 1947, supra note 1, at art. XX.

62 Appellate Body Report, Brazil—Measures Affecting Imports of Retreaded Tyres, ¶¶ 156, 178, 182, WT/DS332/AB/R (Dec. 3, 2007) [hereinafter Appellate Body Report, Retreaded Tyres].

63 Id. ¶ 172.

64 Id. ¶ 151.

65 Id. ¶ 213.

66 Id. ¶¶ 225-226.

67 Id. ¶ 227.

68 Appellate Body Report, European Communities—Measures Affecting Asbestos and Asbestos-Containing Products, ¶ 172, WT/DS135/AB/R (March 12, 2001) (internal quotation marks omitted).

69 See GATS, supra note 12, at art. II.

70 Id. at art. XVI.

71 Id. at art. XVI.

72 Id. at art. VI.

73 Id. at art. XX.

74 See, e.g., Appellate Body Report, United States—Measures Affecting the Cross-Border Supply of Gambling and Betting Services, ¶ 305, WT/DS285/AB/R (Apr. 7, 2005) [hereinafter Appellate Body Report, Gambling].

75 See, e.g., Appellate Body Report, Retreaded Tyres, supra note 62, ¶ 143.

76 See Panel Request by Ukraine, Plain Packaging, supra note 4, at 4; see also Panel Request by Honduras, Plain Packaging, supra note 4, at 3; Panel Request by the Dominican Republic, Plain Packaging, supra note 4, at 3.

77 TBT Agreement, supra note 7, at Annex 1, ¶ 1.

78 See Multilateral Agreements on Trade in Goods, Apr. 15, 1994, Marrakesh Agreement Establishing the World Trade Organization, Annex 1A, 1867 U.N.T.S. 154 (General interpretative note to Annex 1A).

79 TBT Agreement, supra note 7, at art. 2.1.

80 Appellate Body Report, Clove Cigarettes, supra note 2, ¶ 101.

81 Id. ¶ 112.

82 Id. ¶ 120.

83 Id. ¶ 120.

84 Id. ¶ 117.

85 Id. ¶ 94.

86 Id. ¶ 95.

87 Id. ¶ 96.

88 Id. ¶ 174 (emphasis added).

89 See Appellate Body Reports, COOL, supra note 6, ¶ 271.

90 See Appellate Body Report, Tuna, supra note 5, ¶ 225.

91 GATT 1947, supra note 1, at art. XX; See, e.g., Appellate Body Reports, COOL, supra note 6, ¶ 271.

92 Appellate Body Report, Clove Cigarettes, supra note 2, ¶ 180; Appellate Body Report, Tuna, supra note 5, ¶ 214; see also Appellate Body Reports, COOL, supra note 6, ¶ 269.

93 See sources cited supra note 4.

94 Appellate Body Reports, COOL, supra note 6, ¶ 270.

95 Appellate Body Report, Tuna, supra note 5, ¶ 215.

96 Appellate Body Reports, COOL, supra note 6, ¶ 271.

97 Panel Report, Thailand—Restrictions, supra note 14, ¶ 78.

98 TBT Agreement, supra note 7, at art. 2.2.

99 See sources cited supra notes 24-25.

100 Appellate Body Report, Tuna, supra note 5, ¶ 407(b)-(e).

101 See, e.g., id. ¶¶ 315, 318, 320; Appellate Body Reports, COOL, supra note 6, ¶¶ 373-74, 471.

102 Appellate Body Reports, COOL, supra note 6, ¶¶ 379, 442, 469; Appellate Body Report, Tuna, supra note 5, ¶ 323.

103 See, e.g., Appellate Body Report, Gambling, supra note 74, ¶ 282; Appellate Body Report, China—Measures Affecting Trading Rights and Distribution Services for Certain Publications and Audiovisual Entertainment Products, ¶ 319, WT/DS363/AB/R (Dec. 21, 2009).

104 Appellate Body Reports, COOL, supra note 6, ¶ 471.

105 TRIPS Agreement, supra note 9, at art. 7.

106 CARLOS CORREA, TRADE-RELATED ASPECTS OF INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS: A COMMENTARY ON THE TRIPS AGREEMENT 91-92 (2007); see also 1 Peter Yu, The Objectives and Principles of the TRIPS Agreement, in RESEARCH HANDBOOK ON THE PROTECTION OF INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY UNDER WTO RULES: INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY IN THE WTO 146 (Carlos M. Correa ed., 2010).

107 CORREA, supra note 106, at 92.

108 TRIPS Agreement, supra note 9, at art. 8.1.

109 Marrakesh Agreement Establishing the World Trade Organization art. IV.1, Apr. 15, 1994, 1867 U.N.T.S. 154.

110 WTO, Ministerial Conference, Declaration on the TRIPS Agreement and Public Health of 14 November 2001, WT/MIN(01)/DEC/2, 41 I.L.M. 755 (2001).

111 Id. ¶¶ 4-5(a).

112 Understanding on Rules and Procedures Governing the Settlement of Disputes art. 3.2, Apr. 15, 1994, Marrakesh Agreement Establishing the World Trade Organization, Annex 2, 1869 U.N.T.S. 401, 33 ILM 1226.

113 See, e.g., Appellate Body Report, United States—Countervailing Duties on Certain Corrosion-Resistant Carbon Steel Flat Products from Germany, ¶ 61, WT/DS213/AB/R (Nov. 28, 2002).

114 Mitchell, Andrew D. & Voon, Tania, Patents and Public Health in the WTO, FTAs and Beyond: Tension and Conflict in International Law, 43 J. WORLD TRADE 571, 580-81 (2009)Google Scholar.

115 See Marrakesh Agreement Establishing the World Trade Organization, supra note 109, at art. IX:2.

116 Appellate Body Report, Clove Cigarettes, supra note 2, ¶¶ 251-55; see Abbott, Frederick, WTO Dispute Settlement Practice Relating to the Agreement on Trade-Related Intellectual Property Rights, in THE WTO DISPUTE SETTLEMENT SYSTEM 1995-2003, 445 (Federico Ortino & Ernst-Ulrich Petersmann eds., 2004)Google Scholar; see also Gathii, James Thuo, The Legal Status of the Doha Declaration on TRIPS and Public Health Under the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties, 15 HARV. J.L. & TECH. 292, 296-99 (2002)Google Scholar.

117 See Appellate Body Report, Clove Cigarettes, supra note 2, ¶¶ 268-269; Appellate Body Report, Tuna, supra note 5, ¶¶ 371-372.

118 TRIPS Agreement, supra note 9, at art. 16.1.

119 See, e.g., NUNO PIRES DE CARVALHO, THE TRIPS REGIME OF TRADEMARKS AND DESIGNS 384 (Kluwer Law International, 2d ed. 2011); Panel Report, European Communities—Protection of Trademarks and Geographical Indications for Agricultural Products and Foodstuffs, Complaint by Australia, ¶ 7.246, WT/DS290/R (Mar. 15, 2005).

120 TRIPS Agreement, supra note 9, at art. 17; Tobacco Plain Packaging Act 2011 (Cth) s 28 (Austl.).

121 TRIPS Agreement, supra note 9, at art. 15.4.

122 Tobacco Plain Packaging Act 2011 (Cth) s 28 (Austl.).

123 TRIPS Agreement, supra note 9, at art. 20.

124 McGrady, Benn, TRIPs and Trademarks: The Case of Tobacco, 3 WORLD TRADE REV. 53, 61 (2004)Google Scholar.