Mexico in the WTO and NAFTA in a Nutshell: Litigating International Trade Disputes

In this short article, I examine Mexico's trade dispute cases in regional and multilateral fora, and attempt an explanation of its conduct. I argue that lobbying efforts (political economy) play an important role in determining Mexico's decisions to initiate litigation. In turn, concerns relating to bargaining power seem to guide its implementation. Finally, I advance some thoughts on the choice of forum (NAFTA v.WTO), when it comes to cases that could go under either. I do not attempt to provide a comprehensive response to the issue of forum shopping as this work is focussed on offering an explanation on how Mexico deals with its trade disputes.