Why appeals are stuck at WTO, how India will be hit if process breaks down

Over 20 developing countries met in New Delhi last week to discuss ways to prevent the WTO’s dispute resolution system from collapsing due to the logjam in these appointments.

The World Trade Organization’s (WTO’s) dispute settlement mechanism is going through a “crisis”: the body is struggling to appoint new members to its understaffed Appellate Body that hears appeals in trade. Unless the issue is resolved, the body could become defunct, and countries locked in international trade disputes will be left with no forum for recourse.