A Study on the Dispute Settlement System of Regional TradeAgreements as an Alternative to the WTO Dispute Settlement System

Purpose – The purpose of this study is to analyze the structure and characteristics of RTA-DSM, and to analyze the potential of RTA-DSM as an alternative to the WTO-DSM in the crisis of the WTO dispute sttlement system. Design/Methodology/Approach – This paper largely is a literature review. It adopts a method of examining the texts of regional trade agreements based on the WTO RTA database. In addition, this study does not perform legal analysis as much as possible, and analyzes RTA-DSM from an institutional point of view. Findings – RTA-DSM has a similar structure to the WTO-DSM. However, the content of RTA-DSM is insufficient compared to the WTO-DSM, and as a result, there are few cases of dispute resolution. The crisis of the Appellate Body and the rapid evolution of RTA-DSM have increased the importance of RTA-DSM as an alternative to the WTO-DSM. The introduction of dispute settlement systems in regional trade agreements is an irreversible trend, and considering the usefulness, cases of dispute resolution using RTA-DSM will increase rapidly in the future. Research Implications – RTA-DSM cannot completely replace the WTO-DSM. In the long term, WTODSM should be restored, and RTA-DSM should play a supplementary role. The centrality of the WTO, which supports the multilateral trade system, must be maintained through the restoration of the WTO-DSM.