WTO members held their first formal meeting on dispute settlement reform on May 30, 2024. This follows commitments made at the 12th Ministerial Conference (MC12) in June 2022 and reaffirmed at the 13th Ministerial Conference (MC13) earlier this year. Members agreed to address challenges within the dispute settlement system, including issues related to the Appellate Body, aiming for a fully functional system by 2024.
An informal process led by Mr. Marco Molina, then deputy permanent representative of Guatemala, began in February 2023. A consolidated draft text from this process was circulated on February 16 for transparency purposes.
On April 18, Ambassador Petter Ølberg of Norway announced the appointment of Ambassador Dwarka-Canabady as facilitator, marking the formalization of the reform process. The formal meetings will include interpretation services, formal records, online participation for capital-based officials, and document translation to ensure transparency and inclusivity.
The facilitator emphasized that monthly Heads of Delegation (HODs) meetings are designed to provide updates on technical work by experts and allow members to share views on progressing the work. These meetings aim to resolve issues that require HOD-level intervention and offer political guidance as needed. Technical work will remain interest-based and solution-oriented.
Ambassador Dwarka-Canabady communicated earlier about nominating co-convenors for specific subjects within dispute settlement reform. The nominated co-convenors with strong support were: Mr. Joel Richards (Saint Vincent and the Grenadines) and Ms. Jessica Dickerson (Australia) for appeal/review; Mr. David Stranger-Jones (United Kingdom) and Ms. Claudia Diaz Paulino (Mexico) for accessibility; and Mr. Fırat Yeltekin (Türkiye) and Mr. Stacy-Paul Healy (Canada) for other issues.
Two questions were shared with members ahead of the meeting to facilitate discussions:
1. Describe your delegation's interest in appeal/review, including possible characteristics and ideas for developing convergence.
2. What steps are necessary to make the dispute settlement mechanism more accessible to all members?
Forty-six delegations participated in discussing these questions, with some representing groups of members.
Summarizing the discussions, Ambassador Dwarka-Canabady noted strong appreciation for the dispute settlement system as a core element of WTO compliance. She highlighted broad support for maintaining a two-tiered system to enhance credibility while addressing concerns about overreach, length of disputes, and accountability through peer review mechanisms.
There was significant acknowledgment of the need for accessibility improvements and recognition of progress made so far. Suggestions from members on how to update everyone on ongoing work will be considered.
Ambassador Dwarka-Canabady plans to meet with new co-conveners to chart a discussion plan moving forward. The next formal HODs meeting on dispute settlement reform is scheduled for June 20.