The World Trade Organization at Work: Performance in a Member-Driven Milieu

This article discusses performance in the context of the World Trade Organization (WTO). Applying the framework by Gutner and Thompson and inspired by principal-agent theory, it is argued that existing studies have underspecified the institutional milieu that affects performance. The WTO represents a member-driven organization where Members are part of the international organization (IO) (e.g., through rule-making) and at the same time act outside the IO (e.g., through implementation). Thus, a narrow reading of the IO (focusing on the civil servants and the Director-General and his staff) will not suffice to understand IO performance in the WTO context. Selected evidence is presented to illustrate aspects of the WTO’s inner-working and the institutional milieu of performance. In addition, the article discusses a number of performance parameters, including the relationship between Secretariat autonomy and performance, the role of information, and the mechanisms of performance aggregation. The article ends by cautioning against quick fixes to the system to improve performance.

The World Trade Organization - Law, Practice and Policy, 3rd edition

The WTO is one of the most important intergovernmental organizations in the world, yet the way in which it functions as an organization and the scope of its authority and power are still poorly understood. This comprehensively revised new edition of the acclaimed work by an outstanding team of WTO law specialists provides a complete overview of the law and practice of the WTO.