Canada—Certain Measures Concerning Periodicals
World Trade Organization, Appellate Body
WT/DS31/AB/R (June 30, 1997)

- Written by Josh Lee, JD
Facts
Canada (defendant) imposed several laws and regulations involving split-run periodicals, which are editions of a periodical originally produced for another market but also shipped to the Canadian market with advertising specifically targeted at Canada. The measures included a prohibition on imports of split-run periodicals, an increased excise tax on split-run periodicals, and more favorable postage rates granted to Canadian periodicals but not split-run periodicals. The United States (plaintiff) challenged these measures under the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT). The GATT Panel determined that the import ban was prohibited by the GATT, Article XI, and Canada did not appeal. On the excise tax, Canada argued that the split-run periodicals were not like products, which meant that the periodicals could be treated less favorably without violating the GATT national-treatment principle. Canada also argued that the reduced postal rates were permitted as a type of subsidy allowed by the GATT to domestic producers. The GATT Panel ruled against Canada on both of those issues, and Canada appealed to the World Trade Organization (WTO) Appellate Body.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning ()
What to do next…
Here's why 814,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:
- Written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students. 46,300 briefs, keyed to 988 casebooks. Top-notch customer support.
- The right amount of information, includes the facts, issues, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents.
- Access in your classes, works on your mobile and tablet. Massive library of related video lessons and high quality multiple-choice questions.
- Easy to use, uniform format for every case brief. Written in plain English, not in legalese. Our briefs summarize and simplify; they don’t just repeat the court’s language.