ToBAcco PRoducT REGulATIoN ANd ThE WTo: APPEllATE Body REPoRT, US – Clove CigaretteS

O’Neill iNstitute The O’Neill Institute for National and Global Health Law at Georgetown University was established to respond to the need for innovative solutions to the most pressing national and international health concerns. Housed at the Georgetown University Law Center in Washington D.C., the O’Neill Institute reflects the importance of public and private law in health policy analysis. The essential vision for the O’Neill Institute rests upon the proposition that the law has been, and will remain, a fundamental tool for solving critical health problems in our global, national, and local communities. By contributing to a more powerful and deeper understanding of the multiple ways in which law can be used to improve health, the O’Neill Institute hopes to encourage key decision-makers in the public, private, and civil society sectors to employ the law as a positive tool to enable individuals and populations in the United States and throughout the world to lead healthier lives. For additional information, please visit www.oneillinstitute.org. In September 2011, the World Trade Organization (WTO) released the report of a panel tasked with considering a complaint brought by Indonesia concerning prohibitions on certain flavored tobacco products implemented by the United States (US). The panel concluded that the US violated WTO law and recommended that the United States be asked to bring its laws into conformity with WTO law. The United States appealed the panel’s decision. The Appellate Body of the WTO upheld the panel report on April 4, 2012. This briefing paper provides a basic overview of the Appellate Body’s report and examines the implications for tobacco control and public health more generally.