WTO dispute settlement and low income developing countries

Submission note: A thesis submitted in total fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Law to the School of Law, Faculty of Law and Management, La Trobe University, Bundoora.

This thesis first examines the notion of ‘developing countries’ in the context of World Trade Organisation (WTO) agreements, with particular emphasis on the Dispute Settlement Understanding (DSU). It demonstrates that the notion of ‘developing countries’ does not provide a true measure of the level of economic development of countries on the basis of current trade statistics. These arguments are further explored in light of the historical developments surrounding the notion of ‘developing countries’. The current level of participation of low income developing countries in the WTO dispute settlement process is then examined. This examination is conducted in order to ascertain whether the WTO dispute settlement system caters adequately for the needs of low income developing countries. It is argued in this thesis that low income developing countries need to be treated as equal partners in the DSU dispute settlement process. This thesis then highlights that the WTO dispute settlement statistics demonstrate that low income developing countries do not partake in the DSU trade dispute process due to the complexity of the WTO dispute settlement procedures and the lack of resources at the disposal of these countries. This thesis suggests that a new category of ‘low income developing country’ needs to be created, accompanied by the abolition of the ‘developing’ and ‘least developed country’ nomenclature. Finally, it is submitted that a small claims procedure needs to be established for countries which have small claims, so that those claims can be litigated inexpensively.