On November 28, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) will hold hearings in Merck Genéricos Produtos Farmacêuticos addressing the issues of the ECJ’s competence to interpret Article 33 of the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) and whether its interpretation will have direct effect on litigation pending in the national courts. More information available here.
The TPR Report examined and evaluated Colombia’s trade and related policies, concluding that there has been steady economic growth since 1996. Non-tariff barriers to trade have been reduced and several economic reforms have taken place, particularly in services. However, the Report notes that further reforms in practices related to customs, import licensing, local content requirements, internal taxes and the regulation of certain services, are needed to consolidate and broaden these gains.
For further information and access to the Report: http://www.wto.org/english/tratop_e/tpr_e/tp273_e.htm
On November 16, Advocate General Mengozzi delivered his opinion in the case Commission v. Netherlands, which will be decided by the European Court of Justice. The case involves the Netherlands’ conclusion of a bilateral agreement for “open skies†with the United States of America. According to the advocate general, by concluding and applying this agreement, the Netherlands has violated several obligations under the law of the European Union. For more information see here.
On November 21, the European Court of Human Rights issued a unanimous decision in the case Roda and Bonfatti v. Italy. The applicants contested a decision of the Italian children’s court, rendered in 1998, which took Mrs. Roda’s daughter into public care to protect her from sexual abuse. The Court held that the removal itself did not violate Article 8 of the European Convention of Human Rights, but that the same Article had been violated by the fact that no satisfactory contact between the child and the family was arranged. For more information see here.
The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Louise Arbour, toured the Gazan town of Beit Hanoun, where 19 Palestinians were killed on November 8th when Israeli Defence Forces shelled a residential area. The High Commissioner told journalists that an independent, credible and thorough inquiry was needed to determine where responsibility lies for the deaths in Beit Hanoun. Arbour further stated that the lack of accountability for human rights in Gaza has left Palestinians in the territory with a complete sense of abandonment.
http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=20669&Cr=Palestin&Cr1=
In a recent Investment Compact’s Investment Reform Index Report, the OECD analyzes the economic policies of Southeast European countries. The OECD recommends that, to attract more foreign investment, governments engage in further regional economic integration.
For further information, see http://www.oecd.org/document/50/0,2340,en_2649_201185_37656498_1_1_1_1,00.html
