Many international obligations are subject to exceptions. These can be expressed in several ways: an obligation may be vitiated by the presence of one of its constitutive negative requirements, an obligation may be set aside by the application of another more specific rule, or an actor might have a right to act in a certain way notwithstanding a contrary obligation. Exceptions are also of fundamental practical importance: for example, they affect the allocation of the burden of proof. This...

The stalling of the Doha Development Round trade negotiations has resulted in bilateral and regional free trade agreements (BRTAs) becoming an important alternative. These agreements have proliferated in recent years, and now all of the major trading countries are engaging in serious bilateral trade negotiations with multiple trading partners. This second edition provides updated and comprehensive analysis of the contents and trends of recent BRTAs. It is unique in that it situates these a...

The stalling of the Doha Development Round trade negotiations has resulted in bilateral and regional free trade agreements becoming an important alternative. These agreements have proliferated in recent years, and now all of the major trading countries are engaging in serious bilateral trade negotiations with multiple trading partners. This second edition provides a new collection of case studies illustrating the latest trends and innovations in bilateral and regional trade agreements (BRT...

The dispute settlement system of the World Trade Organisation has been referred to as the jewel in the crown of the WTO. Reviewing more thantwenty years of the system’s operation, this volume takes stock by providing an in-depth analysis of key issues that have emerged. The book collects and updates papers by a group of eminent experts that were presented at an international conference at the College of Europe in Bruges. The fundamental question of whether the system is in good shap...

In this updated and expanded edition of his classic text, Arend Lijphart offers a broader and deeper analysis of worldwide democratic institutions than ever before. Examining thirty-six democracies during the period from 1945 to 2010, Lijphart arrives at important—and unexpected—conclusions about what type of democracy works best.Praise for the previous edition:"Magnificent. . . . The best-researched book on democracy in the world today."—Malcolm Mackerras, Ame...

The multilateral trading system and the WTO, its principal institution, are currently in crisis. Now more than ever, it is essential to provide a sound understanding of WTO rules and procedures, and their contribution to a secure and predictable framework for trading relations between nations. This book provides a timely and carefully considered overview of the substantive rules and institutional arrangements of the WTO, written in a concise and highly reader-friendly manner. It provides a...

A lucid and accessible explanation of international intellectual property law. The authors do not shrink from the complexities and nuances of the field but manage commendably to present them as a part of a coherent system.'- Graeme B. Dinwoodie, University of Oxford, UK'Written by two of the foremost scholars in trade and intellectual property, this book offers a clear and comprehensive overview of the institutions, actors, texts, concepts, norms and issues enco...

This book addresses the profound change that modern technology has the capacity to make in democracy itself. While very little has changed in the machinery of the representative system since the late 1700s, that arrangement is starting to unravel. The technology by which the people receive their information and make their will known, is being revolutionized.These new technological capabilities are likely to reinforce a powerful development that was already under way: an unprecedent...

Democracy came to South Africa in April 1994, when the African National Congress won a landslide victory in the first free national election in the country’s history. That definitive and peaceful transition from apartheid is often cited as a model for others to follow. The new order has since survived several transitions of ANC leadership, and it averted a potentially destabilizing constitutional crisis in 2008. Yet enormous challenges remain. Poverty and inequality are among the highest i...

Students new to the study of EU law can find knowing what questions to ask to be as much of a challenge as answering them. This book clearly sets the scene: it explores the history and institutions of the EU, examines the interplay of its main bodies in its legislative process and illustrates the role played by the EU Courts and the importance of fundamental rights. The student is also introduced to the key principles of the internal market, in particular the free movement of goods and the...

Topical and timely, this book offers an economically informed constitutional analysis on European responses to the crisis. It discusses the longer-term proposals on the table including rescue measures and stability mechanisms, as well as the tightening of European economic governance. The authors see the European constitution as a multidimensional and multi-temporal process of constitutionalisation. They examine how the crisis has catapulted the economic constitution back to the 'pacemaker...

Politics & the Struggle for Democracy in Ghana is a pioneering attempt to describe the Ghanaian political system, define its parameters, its structures and analyze the ups and downs of democratic transitions and the struggles thereof. The book is a good fit for students pursuing courses in political science at the university level in Ghana or studying social science at Ghanaian Senior High Schools.