The Law of Subsidies under the GATT/WTO System

The issue of subsidies is arguably the predominant theme, at this moment, 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. By referring to the legal materials of both the GATT 1947 and the WTO systems at each point in his demonstration, Professor Benitah lays a substantial groundwork for determining innovative WTO norms.