Caribbean States are among many States that have accepted the multilateral trading system as catalytic to economic growth, development and employment.

The World Trade Organization (WTO) is the principal international organization governing the legal regime of world trade and dispute settlement and also provides a multilateral forum for trade negotiations. Interfacing with this global framework is the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) between the Caribbean Forum (CARIFORUM) and the European Community (EC), and the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME) established by the Revised Treaty of Chaguaramas.

WTO is expressly referred to in the Revised Treaty and the EPA overlaps with substantive rules in the CSME.  The Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) is said to have compulsory and exclusive jurisdiction over the interpretation and application of the Revised Treaty and this jurisdiction must therefore be analyzed in the context of the dispute settlement arrangements in WTO and EPA.

The Second Annual Seminar considers WTO Law and Policy and its interface with the EPA and CSME regimes.

The Seminar will provide theoretical and practical bases for:

• Placing the WTO in the broad context of general international law and international trade law
• Understanding the application and legal interpretation given to the WTO Agreements by the WTO Dispute Settlement Panels and by the Appellate Body
• Assessing the impact of WTO law and jurisprudence upon the regimes created by the EPA and CSME
• The interface of the CSME with WTO and EPA regimes
• Dispute settlement of the multilateral and plurilateral trading systems (e.g., WTO and EPA) on the one hand, and the compulsory and exclusive jurisdiction of the CCJ to interpret and apply the rules affecting the CSME, on the other.

This seminar will feature and be facilitated by experts from the WTO, other international organizations, and eminent regional and international academics and practitioners. The seminar will be conducted in a highly intensive manner, engaging participants through presentations, discussions and practical exercises. Participants will also receive study materials to enhance their understanding of the multilateral trading system. A certificate of participation will be awarded upon successful completion of the Seminar.

The Seminar will be held in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago.

Registration fee will be US$475.00.

Date: September 24th-28th 2012

Location: 
Caribbean Court of Justice,
134 Henry Street,
Port of Spain, 
Trinidad and Tobago, WI

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