Restrictions on market access increasingly arise through domestic regulation and administrative practice rather than tariffs alone. Product requirements, approval procedures, licensing systems, origin rules and the operation of import regimes may restrict or condition access to a market even where formal tariff commitments are respected.
S. Noël Law Office advises on technical regulations and standards, conformity-assessment procedures, sanitary and phytosanitary measures, customs and origin issues, licensing requirements, quotas, import restrictions, local-content or localisation conditions and other tariff and non-tariff barriers.
The practice assists companies and trade associations in identifying the legal basis of the problem, understanding the relevant domestic and international rules and building the factual and economic record necessary to support their position.
It also advises governments on the compatibility of foreign measures with WTO agreements and trade agreements and on the available options for addressing those measures through bilateral engagement, institutional processes, WTO committees, negotiations or dispute settlement.
Particular attention is given to selecting the appropriate forum and sequence of action. In many cases, an issue may be more effectively addressed through technical discussions, regulatory engagement or a WTO committee before formal litigation is considered.
S. Noël Law Office advises on technical regulations and standards, conformity-assessment procedures, sanitary and phytosanitary measures, customs and origin issues, licensing requirements, quotas, import restrictions, local-content or localisation conditions and other tariff and non-tariff barriers.
The practice assists companies and trade associations in identifying the legal basis of the problem, understanding the relevant domestic and international rules and building the factual and economic record necessary to support their position.
It also advises governments on the compatibility of foreign measures with WTO agreements and trade agreements and on the available options for addressing those measures through bilateral engagement, institutional processes, WTO committees, negotiations or dispute settlement.
Particular attention is given to selecting the appropriate forum and sequence of action. In many cases, an issue may be more effectively addressed through technical discussions, regulatory engagement or a WTO committee before formal litigation is considered.