8.2.2 The Shrimp – Turtle Case

8.2.2 The Shrimp – Turtle Case

The USA enacted a law that restricted imports of shrimps caught without Turtle – Excluder Devices (TED). Since many Asian and South East Asian Countries dominated the shrimp – export trade, they felt aggrieved. India, Pakistan, Malaysia and Thailand approached the WTO to declare the US law null and void on the ground that, “the US could not apply its laws to foreign process and production methods”.

The Appellate Body of the WTO found that what the US law sought was also addressed by Article XX (g) of the WTO which accorded exception for measures relating to the conservation of exhaustible resources.

Even though no Turtle travelled from Asia to the USA, the Appellate body declared that the US law encourages conservation which is also the purpose of WTO under the Article xx (g) clause. Further, it found that endangered species such as Turtle come under exhaustible resources.

However, the Appelllate body ruled against the USA for showing its displeasure to the way USA choose to implement this law. Many believe that this ruling opened a new chapter in the WTO jurisprudence.

Last modified: Saturday, 24 December 2011, 7:01 AM