19 USC 3533 - Dispute settlement panels and procedures

View all text of Part C [§ 3531 - § 3539]

§ 3533. Dispute settlement panels and procedures

(a) Review by President

(b) Qualifications of appointees to panels

The Trade Representative shall—

(1) seek to ensure that persons appointed to the WTO panel roster are well-qualified, and that the roster includes persons with expertise in the subject areas covered by the Uruguay Round Agreements; and

(2) inform the President of persons nominated to the roster by other WTO member countries.

(d) Notification of disputes

Promptly after a dispute settlement panel is established to consider the consistency of Federal or State law with any of the Uruguay Round Agreements, the Trade Representative shall notify the appropriate congressional committees of—

(1) the nature of the dispute, including the matters set forth in the request for the establishment of the panel, the legal basis of the complaint, and the specific measures, in particular any State or Federal law cited in the request for establishment of the panel;

(2) the identity of the persons serving on the panel; and

(3) whether there was any departure from the rule of consensus with respect to the selection of persons to serve on the panel.

(e) Notice of appeals of panel reports

If an appeal is taken of a report of a panel in a proceeding described in subsection (d), the Trade Representative shall, promptly after the notice of appeal is filed, notify the appropriate congressional committees of—

(1) the issues under appeal; and

(2) the identity of the persons serving on the Appellate Body who are reviewing the report of the panel.

(f) Actions upon circulation of reports

Promptly after the circulation of a report of a panel or of the Appellate Body to WTO members in a proceeding described in subsection (d), the Trade Representative shall—

(1) notify the appropriate congressional committees of the report;

(2) in the case of a report of a panel, consult with the appropriate congressional committees concerning the nature of any appeal that may be taken of the report; and

(3) if the report is adverse to the United States, consult with the appropriate congressional committees concerning whether to implement the report’s recommendation and, if so, the manner of such implementation and the period of time needed for such implementation.

(g) Requirements for agency action

(1) Changes in agency regulations or practice

In any case in which a dispute settlement panel or the Appellate Body finds in its report that a regulation or practice of a department or agency of the United States is inconsistent with any of the Uruguay Round Agreements, that regulation or practice may not be amended, rescinded, or otherwise modified in the implementation of such report unless and until—

(A) the appropriate congressional committees have been consulted under subsection (f);

(B) the Trade Representative has sought advice regarding the modification from relevant private sector advisory committees established under section 2155 of this title;

(C) the head of the relevant department or agency has provided an opportunity for public comment by publishing in the Federal Register the proposed modification and the explanation for the modification;

(D) the Trade Representative has submitted to the appropriate congressional committees a report describing the proposed modification, the reasons for the modification, and a summary of the advice obtained under subparagraph (B) with respect to the modification;

(E) the Trade Representative and the head of the relevant department or agency have consulted with the appropriate congressional committees on the proposed contents of the final rule or other modification; and

(F) the final rule or other modification has been published in the Federal Register.

(2) Effective date of modification

(3) Vote by congressional committees

(4) Inapplicability to ITC

(h) Consultations regarding review of WTO rules and procedures

(Pub. L. 103–465, title I, § 123, Dec. 8, 1994, 108 Stat. 4830.)