concept

Appellate Body

Also known as: AB, WTO Appellate Body

Facts (19)

Sources

International Trade Agreements and U.S. Tariff Laws everycrsreport.com EveryCRSReport.com May 12, 2025 8 facts

claimThe WTO Dispute Settlement Body (DSB) is a plenary committee of the World Trade Organization that issues binding rulings for formal adoption after the Appellate Body circulates its report.

accountSince 2017, the United States government has blocked all appointments to the WTO Appellate Body, arguing that the body was exceeding its authority.

accountSeveral WTO members, including Canada, Mexico, the European Union, and the People's Republic of China, have agreed to an interim arbitration arrangement to hear appeals concerning their disputes or have treated some WTO panel decisions as binding while the Appellate Body remains nonfunctional.

accountThe United States appealed the 2020 WTO panel decision regarding Section 301 tariffs on the People's Republic of China to the defunct Appellate Body, which prevented the Dispute Settlement Body from issuing a final report.

claimThe WTO Appellate Body is a standing body of adjudicators with four-year terms that hears appeals of adverse panel decisions from WTO member countries.

accountIn 2021, a WTO panel ruled against the People's Republic of China regarding its challenge to U.S. solar tariffs, and the People's Republic of China appealed the ruling to the defunct Appellate Body.

accountThe United States appealed the 2022 WTO panel decisions regarding steel and aluminum tariffs to the Appellate Body (AB), which prevented the Dispute Settlement Body (DSB) from issuing final reports.

accountIn 2019, the WTO Appellate Body fell below its quorum of three members, which prevented it from hearing appeals and prevented the Dispute Settlement Body from rendering final reports in appealed cases.

Why the US and the WTO should part ways - CEPR cepr.org VoxEU Jun 25, 2025 7 facts

claimThe United States' repeated breaches of the World Trade Organization (WTO) agreement are characterized as violations of both the letter and the spirit of the agreement, as interpreted by WTO panels and the Appellate Body.

referenceThe Multi-Party Interim Agreement is an agreement between some WTO members to submit their disputes to a surrogate Appellate Body, which was formed in response to the United States blocking the original WTO Appellate Body.

accountA WTO panel determined that US tariffs on aluminium and steel violated the letter of the WTO agreement, but the United States remained unpunished because it had paralyzed the WTO Appellate Body, causing the appeal to go into a void.

accountThe Biden administration maintained most of the tariffs imposed by the first Trump administration, including China-specific tariffs and steel tariffs, and continued to block the appointment of new members to the WTO Appellate Body.

claimThe United States continues to block Appellate Body appointments, which paralyzes a central feature of the World Trade Organization's dispute settlement system.

claimThe United States is undermining the WTO dispute settlement system by blocking the appointment of new Appellate Body judges.

accountShortly after the WTO Agreement went into force, the United States became frustrated with the agreement's discipline after losing several disputes regarding safeguard tariffs due to the demanding standards set by WTO panels and the Appellate Body.

World Trade Without the US | Cato Institute cato.org Cato Institute 2 facts

claimActions taken by the United States have reduced the WTO Appellate Body to a paper tribunal.

claimThe empty bench of the WTO Appellate Body prevents final appeals in disputes involving the United States, which effectively blocks the final adoption of panel rulings against the United States.

Transatlantic Trade, the Trump Disruption and the World ... - ECPS populismstudies.org Kent Jones · European Center for Populism Studies Jan 20, 2026 1 fact

perspectiveCritics, including those cited by Miranda and Miranda (2023), charged the WTO dispute settlement Appellate Body with judicial overreach and violation of WTO members’ sovereignty.

The Great Realignment: Geopolitics, Power Shifts, and ... - Pulmus7 pulmus7.com Pulmus7 1 fact

claimThe United States has actively challenged the World Trade Organization's dispute settlement system by blocking appointments to the Appellate Body.