Ujal Singh Bhatia Sworn in as Member of WTO Appellate Body
THE Appellate Body is responsible for hearing appeals of WTO panel reports. It is composed of seven members, each appointed for a four-year term, with a possibility to be reappointed once. The expiration dates of terms are staggered, ensuring that not all members begin and complete their terms at the same time. Members of the Appellate Body must be persons of recognized authority with demonstrated expertise in law, international trade and the subject matter of the covered agreements generally and must not be affiliated with any government. The members of the Appellate Body are appointed by the Dispute Settlement Body.
Legal Corner Icon — the image was hosted by the publisher and was not captured.Ujal Singh Bhatia, a 1974 batch IAS officer, retired in 2010, is an independent consultant and academic engaged in developing a policy framework for Indian agricultural investments overseas, while at the same time working with the Commonwealth Secretariat on multilateral trade issues.
From 2004 to 2010, Bhatia was India's Permanent Representative to the WTO. During his tenure as Permanent Representative, he was an active participant in the dispute settlement process, representing India in a number of dispute settlement cases both as a complainant and respondent in disputes relating to anti-dumping, as well as taxation and import duty issues. He also has adjudicatory experience having served as a WTO dispute settlement panelist. He took over as Member of the Appellate body on 8 th December.