Summary: Member countries of the World Trade Organization (WTO) have actively used the WTO dispute settlement system during the first five years and filed 187 complaints as of April 2000. The United States and the European Union were the most active participants, both as plaintiffs and defendants. Out of 25 cases in which the United States was a plaintiff, the United States prevailed in a final WTO dispute settlement ruling in 13 cases, resolved the dispute without a ruling in 10 cases, and did not prevail in two cases. As a defendant in 17 cases, the United States prevailed in one case, resolved the dispute without a ruling in 10 cases, and lost in six cases. Overall, GAO's analysis shows that the United States has gained more than it has lost in the WTO dispute resolution system so far. WTO cases have resulted in a large number of changes in foreign trade practices, while their effect on U.S. laws and regulations has been minimal. GAO summarized this report in testimony before Congress; see: World Trade Organization: U.S. Experience in Dispute Settlement System--the First Five Years, by Susan S. Westin, Associate Director for International Relations and Trade Issues, before the Subcommittee on International Trade, Senate Committee on Finance. GAO/T-NSIAD/OGC-00-202, June 20 (10 pages).
