| CODE | ECL5040 | |||||||||
| TITLE | EU and International Trade Law and Policy | |||||||||
| UM LEVEL | 05 - Postgraduate Modular Diploma or Degree Course | |||||||||
| MQF LEVEL | Not Applicable | |||||||||
| ECTS CREDITS | 6 | |||||||||
| DEPARTMENT | European and Comparative Law | |||||||||
| DESCRIPTION | Trade is a recurrent feature in the agenda of the various actors in the international arena. The notion of trade has over the time assumed a wide definition, encompassing sectors such as services, intellectual property and development. This unit will provide the forum wherein students will discuss and examine the evolution of international trade, the pertinent institutional mechanisms and the controversial punditry related thereto. The World Trade Organisation (WTO) and the WTO Agreements will provide the setting for these discussions. Constant reference will be made to WTO Panel and Appellate Body rulings. These decisions will be pivotal in enabling the students to assess the various issues discussed. The EU has matured into one of the key players in the scene of international trade. This unit will provide students with an overview of the EU’s trade policy with particular reference to the external relations law, the common commercial policy and the use of trade defense instruments. The relevant judgments of the European Court of Justice will provide the basic tools for understanding the evolution and application of the EU’s commercial policy. Another aim of this unit is to conduct a comparative exercise between WTO law and EU law. This excurses through WTO law and EU trade policy will enable the students to effectively conduct a comparative exercise between the WTO and the EU in specific areas, such as the issue of non-discrimination. Moreover, specific sectoral issues will be tackled throughout the unit such as trade in services and trade in intellectual property. Learning Outcomes: Students should achieve a good overview of the EU's trade policy instruments. They should be able to analyse the competences of the European Union and of the Member States, as well as the Common Commercial Policy and its scope, and will subsequently progress to an examination of a number of other issues. Throughout the Unit, an emphasis will inevitably be made on the basic principles and mechanisms of the World Trade Organisation. The WTO is indeed one of the key contributors to the fashioning of the EU's trade policy. Other issues treated include the General Agreement on Trade in Services, the EU's Antidumping Rules, the EU's Anti-Subsidy Rules and the EU Trade Barriers Regulation. The unit is studied from a critical perspective where students are not only requested to familiarize themselves with the laws and case law but to study these laws by attempting to constructively identify their deficiencies and to explore possible solutions how to overcome such problems. Reading Material: Recommended text books a) Treibilcock M.J. & Howese R. The Regulation of International Trade, 3rd ed Routledge, 2005; b) De Burca G. & Scott J. (ed), The EU and the WTO, Hart, 2003 c) Palmeter et al, Dispute Settlement in the WTO, Cambridge, 2004 d) Jackson J. The Jurisprudence of GATT and the WTO, Cambridge 2000 e) The Legal Texts: The results of the Uruguay Round of Multilateral Trade Negotiations Recommended Journals for Research: a) Official Journal of the European Communities (OJ); b) European Court Reports c) Common Market Law Reports d) Common Market Law Review e) European Law Review f) Journal or World Trade g) Journal of International Economic Law |
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| STUDY-UNIT TYPE | Lecture | |||||||||
| METHOD OF ASSESSMENT |
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| LECTURER/S | Joseph Bugeja |
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The University makes every effort to ensure that the published Courses Plans, Programmes of Study and Study-Unit information are complete and up-to-date at the time of publication. The University reserves the right to make changes in case errors are detected after publication.
The availability of optional units may be subject to timetabling constraints. Units not attracting a sufficient number of registrations may be withdrawn without notice. It should be noted that all the information in the description above applies to study-units available during the academic year 2023/4. It may be subject to change in subsequent years. |
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