The Law of Subsidies under the GATT/WTO System

This work on the law of subsidies has been long-awaited by many actors in international trade. With its introduction of the concept of "attenuation" of entitlement, Marc Benitah's analysis alters the understanding of the international economic law of subsidies and its future invocation and jurisprudence. The issue of subsidies is a predominant theme in international economic law, and a consistent approach to the legal treatment of subsidies is urgently needed. In Professor Benitah's view, the answer lies in the recognition that entitlements granted to a party seeking to defend itself against the "adverse effects" of subsidies must be "attenuated" in order to avoid undesirable economic and social consequences. In the various techniques of attenuation - thoroughly described and analyzed in this book - may be found the unifying thread on which a logical, coherent law of subsidies may be strung.