Originally from World Arbitration And Mediation Review (WAMR)

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THE WTO AND NAFTA – A COMPARISON

OF DISPUTE RESOLUTION SYSTEMS AND
OUTCOMES INVOLVING THE UNITED
STATES, MEXICO, AND CANADA
by Sue Ann Mota* and Divya Rao**

I. INTRODUCTION
North America has become increasingly interlinked in the past fifteen
years. During this time, the United States has been a crucial player in
creating two trade systems: the World Trade Organization (hereinafter the
WTO) and the North American Free Trade Agreement (hereinafter NAFTA).
Both of these systems provide a dispute resolution framework for
international disputes and they are responsible for increased trade between
the three North American nations.
The United States Trade Representative puts the 2002 total trade
between the NAFTA countries at (U.S.) $ 621 billion, a figure more than
double that of 1993.1 Additionally, the U.S. Census Bureau estimates the
2006 U.S.-Canada trade to have the United States exporting (U.S.) $107,419
million worth of goods and importing $159,796 million.2 The trade figures
for Mexico are similarly staggering, with (U.S.) $133,979 million exported
and (U.S.) $198,253 million US imported.3 Mexico’s imports from Canada
amounted to (U.S.) $7375 million in 2006, while Canada’s imports from
Mexico were (U.S.) $14,104 million. Further, virtually all years since 1993
have seen an increase in trade between the North American nations.4
A critical issue in international trade is the resolution of international
disputes. The United States is a member of two international trade groups,
the WTO and NAFTA. Each has its own dispute resolution system. The
sheer volume of trade that passes between these nations makes these
systems of the utmost importance. Because the United States, along with