wto_doc_1996-c116afe97f598bad.pdf

This guide, authored by L. Brennan Van Dyke and John Barlow Weiner of the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL), provides an introduction and critical evaluation of the World Trade Organization (WTO) General Council's July 18, 1996, Decision on the circulation and derestriction of documents. The document explains the mechanisms for making restricted documents public and argues that the current system fails to facilitate meaningful public participation in trade policy-making.

• The WTO General Council adopted a Decision on July 18, 1996, to establish procedures for disseminating documents to the public. While it ostensibly reversed the GATT presumption in favor of restriction by making official series documents unrestricted by default, most documents related to pending policy decisions remain listed as restricted in the Decision's Appendix.
• Documents are derestricted through three primary methods: automatic derestriction (triggered by specific events like the adoption of a report), scheduled derestriction consideration (periodic review by the Membership), and unscheduled derestriction consideration (requested by a Member or considered by a WTO body).
• The Secretariat's implementation of scheduled derestriction often adds delays beyond the mandated restricted periods. For example, the practice of providing 60-days notice to the Membership after a restricted period has already passed adds an additional 60 days to the total time a document remains restricted.
• WTO Members possess absolute and arbitrary authority to prevent the derestriction of documents. Members can object to derestriction for any reason, and if an objection is made, the document may not be reconsidered for up to two years.
• The authors critique the WTO system for ensuring that documents are only available after policy decisions have been made, rendering public input ineffective. They argue that automatic derestriction is of limited value because it occurs after the primary bodies have completed their review and likely reached a consensus.
• The guide recommends a fundamental shift toward a presumption of immediate public availability. Proposed reforms include making all documents public simultaneously with WTO officials unless specific rules (such as protecting proprietary information or national security) apply, and requiring a two-thirds majority vote to restrict a document.

APA

Center for International Environmental Law (n.d.). wto_doc_1996-c116afe97f598bad.pdf. https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/WTO_Doc_1996.pdf

Chicago

Center for International Environmental Law. wto_doc_1996-c116afe97f598bad.pdf. n.d. https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/WTO_Doc_1996.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Center for International Environmental Law |title=wto_doc_1996-c116afe97f598bad.pdf |url=https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/WTO_Doc_1996.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{centerforinternationalenvironmentallawndwtodoc1996c116afe97f598badpdf, author = {{Center for International Environmental Law}}, title = {{wto\_doc\_1996-c116afe97f598bad.pdf}}, institution = {Center for International Environmental Law}, url = {https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/WTO_Doc_1996.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }