Commercial and Trading Disputes under International Law: Analysing the Role of World Trade Organization

Abstract

In 1995, the World Trade Organization (WTO) was established as the only international Organization
dealing with the global rules of trade between nations. Its primary function was to ensure that trade flows
as smoothly, predictably and freely as possible. The WTO is built under the umbrella of WTO agreements
which are often called WTO’s trade rules. At the heart of the system are the WTO’s Agreements, which
are the legal rules for international commerce. The WTO is an institution of globalization and has had
both positive and potentially adverse effects on the world. The WTO's efforts have positively increased
trade expansion globally. Trading cannot go without attendant disputes. Disputes in the WTO arise when
one party adopts a trade policy measure or takes some actions that other party considers to be
inconsistent with the obligations set out in the WTO agreements. This paper appraised the role of the
WTO in settling these trade disputes. Specifically, the paper examined the WTO Dispute Settlement
System, it identified the objectives of the system and whether or not the system allows for the
actualization of these objective. The paper found out that WTO has a sophisticated and well detailed
dispute resolution mechanism however, it made recommendations that the WTO should be more
transparent and open in their dispute resolution processes.