Legal Opportunity in Trade Negotiations’ Asia Research Centre Public Lecture by Dr Silke Tromm

In 2009, the Economic Community of West African States challenged the European Union’s interpretation of Article XXIV GATT in bilateral trade talks, claiming the clause allowed more flexibility on market opening than expected. In this Public Lecture, Dr Trommer argues that trade political actors can become aware of the pathways to influence that legal uncertainty opens,in particular under conditions of multi-level governance where national,regional and international legal orders are intert

Market access constitutes one unresolved issue slowing down negotiations between the trade power Europe and trade- and aid-dependent ECOWAS (Economic Community of West African States).

In this Lecture, Dr Trommer examines how the political economy literature dealing with trade policy-making is challenged on at least two accounts: the role of typically sidelined actors such as poor countries and transnational activists; and the role of the law in mediating strategic and discursive aspects of trade political processes. Dr Trommer currently works with Professor Ann Capling on the Australia Research Council-funded research project “The WTO and the Future of the Global Trade System”, as well as pursuing her own research on the global trading system, with a specific interest in issues relating to development studies, social movement studies/transnational studies and international law.