Lee A. Bygrave (red.) YULEX 2002 - Universitetet i Oslo

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The WTO and Legal Regulation of E-Commerce 45
contract needs revision. In a nutshell, the main role of the WTO is to guarantee
that trade runs as smoothly, predictably and freely as possible. The WTO
must realise its duties while respecting the environment, optimising the
world’s resources and contributing to the enhancement of underdeveloped
countries. 6 Providing the institutional framework for development and administration
of its substantive laws, the WTO is made up of a range of bodies
so as to ensure accurate representation and efficient management. At the top
of the organisational structure is the Ministerial Conference, which assembles
every two years to report on the WTO’s progress. Meeting on a more regular
basis is the General Council, which is subordinated by three auxiliary councils:
the Council for Trade in Goods, the Council for Trade in Services and
the Council for Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights.
2.2 The Agreements
Each of the Agreements include a Most Favoured Nation (MFN) provision
and a National Treatment (NT) provision. The MFN provision states that
each Member State must treat every other Member State as their “most favoured”
trading partner. Any benefits given to one Member State must thus
be given to the others. Running along similar lines, the NT condition stipulates
that all products should be treated equally, regardless of whether they
have a local or imported origin. 7 Over and above these fundamental clauses,
the Agreements address issues that are specific to their own area, although
GATT and GATS have more or less the same format. The main difference
between these two Agreements is their profundity and stability. In respect of
services, while the basic framework is in place with GATS, this system is still
in its infancy stages, and so remains incomplete. As for TRIPS, although it
endorses the basic concepts of MFN and NT, it takes quite a different approach
to that of GATT and GATS. Reflecting that ideas and knowledge are
increasingly the focus of trade, TRIPS seeks to ensure that intellectual property
rights are not abused during the trading process. As a result, it looks
specifically at the different forms of intellectual property rights and the standards
with which they interact.
2.3 Prominent Powers
Generally, any regulation that comes from international organisations is of a
non-binding nature, and thus signatories agree voluntarily to abide by its
6 Qureshi, supra n 4.
7 At this stage, the NT clause only extends to the services covered in the annexes to GATS.