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This case study examines the legal ruling in RICHTERSVELD COMMUNITY v ALEXKOR LTD & ANOTHER [2004], which establishes that the Land Claims Court of South Africa has the competence to order the repair of environmental damage or the payment of compensation for such damage as part of land restitution claims.

This draft issue brief examines the intersection of Export Credit Agencies (ECAs), the OECD Arrangement on Guidelines for Officially Supported Export Credits, and the WTO Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures (ASCM). It analyzes how the 'safe haven' clause in the ASCM protects OECD members' export credits from being classified as prohibited subsidies, the resulting competitive disadvantages for developing countries, and the legal precedents set by the Brazil-Canada aircraft disputes. The document also highlights the lack of comprehensive environmental and social guidelines governing ECA activities.

This research paper examines the tension between the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) and the human right to water. The authors argue that because the realization of the right to water requires flexible, country-specific regulatory strategies, international trade law should be conceptualized in deference to national regulatory autonomy to prevent trade obligations from undermining the state's ability to ensure universal and affordable access to water.

This research paper by the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL) and WWF International examines the potential conflicts between the WTO's General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) and domestic water management policies. The authors argue that while water management requires flexibility and adaptive planning to protect ecosystems, the GATS favors legal predictability and 'locking in' policy choices, which may constrain a state's ability to regulate water rights, pollution, and resource extraction.

This research paper by the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL) examines the legal concepts of 'necessity' and 'proportionality' within the World Trade Organization (WTO) framework. It argues that shifting from a strict necessity test to a proportionality test—which involves weighing trade restrictions against non-economic policy goals—could allow the WTO to usurp the regulatory authority of national governments and undermine the ability of Member States to protect public health, consumers, and the environment.

This briefing by the Center for International Environmental Law examines how international financial institutions, investment treaties, and trade agreements pressure national governments to privatize water services, potentially compromising the human right to water and limiting regulatory flexibility.

This briefing by the Center for International Environmental Law examines how international trade and investment agreements, along with policies from international financial institutions (IFIs), can lock developing countries into the privatization of water services. It argues that these mechanisms may conflict with the recognized human right to water and limit the ability of national governments to regulate essential services for the public good.

This briefing paper by the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL) analyzes the international legal framework for foreign investment, arguing that current treaties and agreements prioritize investor rights and liberalization over environmental protection, social goals, and corporate accountability.

This report by Konrad von Moltke for the Commonwealth Secretariat argues for the creation of a Cotonou Investment Agreement to amplify the investment provisions of the Cotonou Partnership Agreement (CPA). The author contends that existing bilateral investment treaties (BITs) are too narrow, focusing primarily on investor protection without empirical evidence of benefiting developing countries. The proposed agreement would balance investor rights with host state development goals, incorporate principles of good governance, and establish a Cotonou Investment Fund and an Observatory for ACP Investment to monitor progress toward sustainable development and poverty eradication in ACP countries.

This research paper by the International Institute for Sustainable Development examines the potential conflicts and synergies between the WTO's TRIPS Agreement on intellectual property and the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). It analyzes how patent laws regarding biological resources, technology transfer, and traditional knowledge intersect with national sovereignty and the goal of equitable benefit sharing.

This briefing paper examines the Agreement on Government Procurement (GPA) within the WTO framework, focusing on its structure, the challenges of reaching consensus, and its implications for sustainable development and developing countries.

This report by the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL) argues that sustainable development and environmental justice are symbiotically related, asserting that the former cannot be achieved without the latter. The document explores the legal nexus between human rights and the environment, emphasizing the right to a healthy environment, community-based property rights, and procedural rights as essential components for achieving global sustainability and justice.

This briefing paper, written by Aaron Cosbey of the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) for the Commission for Environmental Cooperation's (CEC) Joint Public Advisory Committee (JPAC), analyzes the environmental implications of NAFTA's Chapter 11. The author argues that the investor-state dispute settlement mechanism, originally designed for commercial protection, has become a tool for challenging non-commercial public interest regulations, creating risks for national environmental management.

This report analyzes the compliance system of the Kyoto Protocol, describing it as more robust than typical multilateral environmental agreements due to its quasi-judicial enforcement mechanisms and specific penalties for developed nations that fail to meet emissions targets.

This research paper explores the potential for bringing human rights complaints against the United States due to the adverse impacts of global warming, particularly focusing on the threats to the fundamental rights of indigenous inhabitants of the Arctic.

This report analyzes the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) and its implications for environmental policy makers. It argues that the GATS, which functions as both a trade and investment agreement, may constrain the ability of national and sub-national governments to implement environmental regulations. The authors highlight risks associated with market access obligations, national treatment standards, and proposed disciplines on domestic regulation, while recommending the use of Sustainability Impact Assessments and the introduction of a broader environmental exception clause in the GATS text.

This 2001 research paper by the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL) and WWF examines the legal and practical tensions between Multilateral Environmental Agreements (MEAs) and the World Trade Organization (WTO). It analyzes how WTO rules on trade in goods, services, and intellectual property can conflict with environmental objectives, such as the precautionary principle and biodiversity conservation. The paper argues for a legal clarification of the MEA-WTO relationship to ensure that trade rules do not undermine environmental governance and proposes practical steps for policy coherence, including sustainability assessments and enhanced inter-ministerial cooperation.

This research paper by the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL) examines the review of Article 27.3(b) of the TRIPS Agreement. It argues that strong intellectual property (IP) protections over life-forms may hinder development in developing countries by restricting innovation, increasing market concentration, and conflicting with the objectives of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD).

This research paper analyzes the substantive scope of the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS), specifically focusing on Article I:3, which determines whether 'public services' are covered by the agreement. The author examines the legal definitions of services supplied in the exercise of governmental authority, evaluates the inconsistent interpretations provided by the WTO Secretariat and member states, and applies principles of public international law to argue for potential methods of narrowing the agreement's scope to protect national policy objectives.

A joint statement from several environmental organizations providing recommendations to the U.S. Trade Representative to ensure that the proposed United States-Chile Free Trade Agreement (FTA) protects environmental standards, incorporates the precautionary principle, and avoids trade liberalization in sensitive sectors like forestry and mining.