4 Jun 2015
Second Joint Academy held in Delhi
The Joint Academy on International Trade Law and Policy run by the WTI and the Centre for WTO Studies (CWS) of the Indian Institute of Foreign Trade (IIFT) is taking place for the second time in Delhi. The four-week course at the IIFT runs from 25 May until 19 June 2015 and provides law students and legal professionals in India with an opportunity to deepen their knowledge of trade regulation and governance issues.
Week 1 focused on The Legal Foundations of Contemporary Trade and Investment Law. Sessions on the first three days examined the principles of the GATT and WTO dispute settlement and were taught by Professor Thomas Cottier of the WTI. The second half of the week was devoted to investment law, with sessions taught by WTI faculty member Krista Nadakavukaren Schefer and R.V. Anuradha, an Indian legal practitioner.
Prof. Cottier said he was proud of the WTI involvement in India. And he remarked on the “exceptionally gifted group of 30 students recruited from over the country and leading universities”. “The encounter with such a bright and interested group of knowledgeable and sophisticated students was truly enriching,” he said.
WTI faculty member Christian Häberli is teaching on the second week of the course, now underway, given over to The Law of Goods Trade: Agriculture; SPS/TBT; Customs Law.
The last two weeks will examine The Law and Policy of Trade Remedies, and Current WTO Issues; and Trade in Services, and Trade and Intellectual Property Rights. Pierre Sauvé of the WTI faculty will teach the final sessions on services.
The weekly modules, which can be attended individually, consist of five days of in-class learning followed by an assessment at the end of either each module or the full four-week period.
The Joint Academy offers a graduate level curriculum aimed at participants from India and eventually other developing countries. The intention is to enable them to participate more effectively in the design, conduct and implementation of trade policy and to derive greater benefits from involvement in international trade negotiations.
On 18 June Swiss Ambassador Linus von Castelmur will invite students and faculty members of the Joint Academy as well as WTI alumni to the Embassy of Switzerland in Delhi.