Much Needed Reform in the Realm of Public Morals: A Proposed Addition to the GATT Article XX(a) "Public Morals" Framework, Resulting From China-Audiovisual

Authors

• Tyler M. Smith, Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law

Abstract

The note examines the tension between free trade and moral considerations under the GATT and GATS frameworks, focusing on the public morals exceptions in Article XXa of the GATT and Article XIVa of the GATS. It critiques the WTO's current two-tiered jurisprudential framework, particularly the provisional justification standard, for insufficiently addressing the balance between trade restrictions and moral protections. The author proposes a more robust analytical framework requiring states invoking public morals exceptions to demonstrate substantial domestic legislative and executive efforts to protect those morals, ensuring such measures are not mere pretexts for protectionism. This approach aims to foster predictability, reduce relativistic claims, and promote transnational norm-building while addressing economic concerns like black markets and job restoration.

Disciplines

International Trade Law | Law | Law and Society

Recommended Citation

Tyler M. Smith, Much Needed Reform in the Realm of Public Morals: A Proposed Addition to the GATT Article XX(a) "Public Morals" Framework, Resulting From China-Audiovisual, 19 Cardozo J. Int'l & Comp. L. 733 (2011).
Available at: https://larc.cardozo.yu.edu/cjicl/vol19/iss3/7