Open dispute settlement hearings in the World Trade Organization

A statement from the Center for International Environmental Law and WWF European Policy Office to the European Commission requesting the adoption of a policy to support web-casting for all World Trade Organization (WTO) dispute settlement hearings to increase transparency and accessibility.

• The Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL) and WWF European Policy Office acknowledge the European Commission's decision to allow closed-circuit television access for the public in Geneva during the WTO Beef Hormones case hearings in September 2005 and September/October 2006.
• Current access to WTO hearings is limited to those with the financial resources to travel to Geneva, which effectively excludes much of civil society, particularly non-industry groups and ordinary citizens from the Global South.
• Web-casting is proposed as a solution to increase transparency and credibility because it removes travel barriers and is more efficient than closed-circuit television by eliminating the need for physical space, security clearances, and pre-hearing clearance processes.
• The authors assert that the WTO has the technical capacity and willingness to web-cast, as it already does so for training purposes and major events.
• The European Commission is requested to adopt an official policy to request open web-cast hearings for all WTO dispute settlement hearings in which it is a party, regardless of the specific dispute.

APA

Center for International Environmental Law (2006). Open dispute settlement hearings in the World Trade Organization. https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/WTODispute_EC_Oct06.pdf

Chicago

Center for International Environmental Law. Open dispute settlement hearings in the World Trade Organization. 2006. https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/WTODispute_EC_Oct06.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |author=Center for International Environmental Law |title=Open dispute settlement hearings in the World Trade Organization |date=4 October 2006 |url=https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/WTODispute_EC_Oct06.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{centerforinternationalenvironmentallaw2006open, author = {{Center for International Environmental Law}}, title = {{Open dispute settlement hearings in the World Trade Organization}}, publisher = {Center for International Environmental Law}, year = {2006}, month = oct, url = {https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/WTODispute_EC_Oct06.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }