UNITED STATES – COUNTERVAILING
DUTY MEASURES
ON CERTAIN
PRODUCTS FROM CHINA
Communication from the Chairman of the Panel
The following communication,
dated 18 November 2013, addressed to the Chairman of the Dispute Settlement
Body (DSB), is circulated pursuant to Article 12.9 of the Dispute Settlement
Understanding (DSU).
_______________
Article 12.8 of the
Understanding on Rules and Procedures Governing the Settlement of Disputes
(DSU) provides that the period in which a panel shall conduct its examination,
from the date that the composition and terms of reference of the panel have
been agreed upon until the date the final report is issued to the parties to
the dispute, shall, as a general rule, not exceed six months.
Article 12.9 of the DSU provides
that, when a panel considers that it cannot issue its report within six months,
it shall inform the Dispute Settlement Body (DSB) in writing accordingly and
indicate the reasons, together with an estimate of the period within which it
will issue its report.
The Panel in United States – Countervailing Duty Measures
on Certain Products from China (DS437) was established by the DSB on 28 September 2012 and
composed on 26 November 2012.
The timetable adopted by the
Panel after consultations with the Parties to the dispute envisaged that the
final report would be issued to the Parties by January 2014. However, due to the complexity of the issues raised by
the parties in this dispute, the Panel now expects to conclude its work in May
2014.