WTO CASE REVIEW 2004
Raj Bhala and David A. Gantz

For the WTO, 2004 was a year of very limited progress, and for 2005, the organization faces many challenges, among them moving the Doha Development Round forward; dealing with the proliferation of regional trade agreements; selecting a new director-general; and admitting a number of impatient new members. In July 2004, the Members agreed on a “Doha Work Programme,” a mild breakthrough that provided, inter alia, a framework for action on agriculture, cotton, non-agricultural market access, and services. However, as many trade experts expected, during the final six months of 2004 the Members made relatively little progress on agricultural subsidies, services, or other major issues under the Doha Development Round. For example, a U.S. negotiator was reportedly “encouraged” by services negotiations but indicated concern that an insufficient number of member countries had been “sufficiently engaged” in the talks. Thus, there remains some doubt as of April 2005 whether significant progress can be made by the time of the Hong Kong ministerial meeting scheduled for December 2005.

BEACHFRONT PROPERTY IN ARIZONA?: LOOSENING RESTRICTIONS ON FOREIGN ACQUISITION OF MEXICAN REAL ESTATE AND THE IMPLICATIONS FOR ARIZONA INVESTORS
Michael Boreale

INTRODUCTION The state of Arizona appeals to investors because it presents a wealth of resources, both natural and economic. However, due to Arizona’s landlocked status, there is no ocean coastline. Beachfront property is attractive to leisure-seekers as well as to investors, and Southern California and Mexico are the nearest and most logical places for an Arizona investor to look for beachfront property. Given the over-development and high prices present in California, Mexico is a natural alternative for those seeking reasonably priced beach property. Traditionally, however, Mexico’s restrictive policies towards foreign investment have prevented confident purchases of Mexican real estate. Yet since the implementation of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), the Mexican government has made great strides in opening up its economy to foreign investment and creating a more appealing environment for the foreign investor.

REFORMING RETIREMENT SYSTEMS: WHY THE FRENCH HAVE SUCCEEDED WHEN AMERICANS HAVE NOT
Kathryn L. Moore

As life expectancy increases and the baby boom generation approaches retirement age, retirement systems throughout the Western world are facing financing difficulties. In recent years, many European countries, including France, Italy, Sweden,Switzerland, and Germany, have amended their retirement systems to address these funding difficulties. Despite years of debate, however, the American Social Security system has not been changed in any significant way since 1983.

LOS “JONKEADOS”1 AND THE NAALC:2 THE AUTOTRIM/CUSTOMTRIM CASE AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR SUBMISSIONS UNDER THE NAFTA LABOR SIDE AGREEMENT
Monica Schurtman

“I was in charge of handling the steering wheels and applying solvents and leather . . . . After a few years of working . . . I started to feel bleeding in my mouth. I had to keep a trash can nearby so I could use it as a spittoon . . . . And then, in ‘95, I was . . . [stretching] the leather over the steering wheel, and I heard my bone pop from my elbow . . . I only got a pill for my pain. And they sent me back to work. Well, my [arm] kept hurting . . . I was sent to the IMSS [but] . . . they told me that I didn’t have anything . . . I still kept on bleeding through my mouth, and I kept on bleeding more and more . . . [T]hey sent me to a psychologist . . . .” When I returned to [work] . . . they told me that I had already been discharged, that they did not need my services any more.” - Former worker, 1988-1998, Public Hearing on the Autotrim/Customtrim case

ASSESSING THE BUSH ADMINISTRATION’S DETENTION POLICY FOR TALIBAN AND AL-QAEDA COMBATANTS AT GUANTÁNAMO BAY IN LIGHT OF DEVELOPING UNITED STATES CASE LAW AND INTERNATIONAL HUMANITARIAN LAW, INCLUDING THE GENEVA CONVENTIONS
Rui Wang

In the wake of the September 11th attacks on the World Trade Center, American attitudes regarding terrorism quickly changed. Whereas terrorist attacks had long been perceived as a remote possibility and punished as a crime, the new American approach escalated into a full-scale “War on Terrorism.” The United States has risked close international ties with traditional American allies in order to launch an offensive in Afghanistan and Iraq. The fact that the September 11th attacks were immediately condemned as acts of war allowed and still allows the executive branch to justify the full extent of its military and intelligence operations, including the detentions at Guantánamo Bay.