More Appeals in the WTO

As per the annual report of the Appellate Body of the WTO, there is more work in store for the Appellate Body in 2014. 

And this is why...

"According to the Legal Affairs Division and the Rules Division, a large number of panels will continue to be active for the foreseeable future. Twenty-seven requests for consultations were received in 2012, the highest number since 2002. This led to the establishment of 11 panels in 2012, the highest number in five years. There are currently seven panels in composition, and six more panel requests are pending before the DSB.Third party participation continues to be high.Four new requests for consultations have been received in 2013, and four panels have already been established this year covering five disputes. Significantly, the compliance proceedings in the aircraft subsidy disputes between the United States and the European Union are also presently under way. Thus, a large number of panel proceedings are currently in progress or about to begin. Assuming: (1) that panel proceedings take, on average, one year from the time of 

establishment of the panel; (2) that the compliance panel proceedings in the aircraft subsidy disputes will take 1.5-2 years; and (3) that, based on the consistent practice of WTO Members involved in disputes since 1996, roughly two-thirds of all panel reports circulated will be appealed the Appellate Body can expect to receive up to a dozen appeals towards the end of 2013 and in 2014. Such an increase in the number of appeals, on top of the increased complexity and size of the average appeal, is likely to exacerbate the challenges confronting the WTO dispute settlement system in the near future."

More disputes at the WTO, more appeals, more international rule making, more predictability and more compliance?