EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES – MEASURES PROHIBITING THE IMPORTATION AND MARKETING OF SEAL PRODUCTS
Document: Constitution of the Panel Established at the Requests of Canada and Norway Note by the Secretariat
Date: 5 October 2012
Document codes: WT/DS400/5; WT/DS401/6; WT/DS400/4; WT/DS401/5
Complainant: Norway
Respondent: EU
Third parties: Argentina, Canada, China, Colombia, Ecuador, Iceland, Japan, Mexico, Namibia, Russia, U.S.
Dispute stage: Appellate Body
Agreements cited: Art. I:1, III:4, XI:1  GATT 1994Art. 2.1, 2.2, 5, 9.2, 9.3, 6, 7.1, 7.4, 7.5  Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT)Art. 4.2  Agriculture

EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES – MEASURES PROHIBITING THE IMPORTATION
AND MARKETING OF SEAL PRODUCTS

Constitution of the Panel Established at the Requests of Canada and Norway

Note by the Secretariat

1. At its meeting on 25 March 2011, the Disput e Settlement Body (DSB ) established a panel
pursuant to the request of Canada in document , in accordance with Article 6 of the
Understanding on Rules and Procedures Governing the Settlement of Disputes (DSU).
1 At its meeting
on 21 April 2011, the DSB established a panel pursuan t to the request of Norway in document
, in accordance with Article 6 of the DSU 2, and agreed, as provided for in Article 9 of
the DSU in respect of multiple complainants, th at the panel established on 25 March 2011 to examine
the complaint by Canada, will also examine Norway's complaint.

2. The Panel's terms of reference are the following:

"To examine, in the light of the relevant provisions of the covered agreements cited
by the parties to the dispute, the matter referred to the DSB by Canada in document
, and by Norway in document , and to make such findings
as will assist the DSB in making the recommendations or in giving the rulings
provided for in those agreements."
3. On 24 September 2012, Canada and Norway requ ested the Director-General to determine the
composition of the Panel, pursuant to Article 8.7 of the DSU. This paragraph provides:

"If there is no agreement on the panelists within 20 days after the date of the
establishment of a panel, at the request of either party, the Director-General, in
consultation with the Chairman of the DSB and the Chairman of the relevant Council
or Committee, shall determine the com position of the panel by appointing the
panelists whom the Director-General consid ers most appropriate in accordance with
any relevant special or additional rules or procedures of the covered agreement or
covered agreements which are at issue in th e dispute, after consulting with the parties
to the dispute. The Chairman of th e DSB shall inform the Members of the
composition of the panel thus formed no later than 10 days after the date the
Chairman receives such a request."

1 WT/DSB/M/294.
2 WT/DSB/M/295.

4. On 4 October 2012, the Director-General accordingly composed the Panel as follows:

 Chairperson: Mr Luzius Wasescha

 Members: Ms Elizabeth Chelliah
 Ms Patricia Holmes

5. Argentina, Canada (for WT/DS401), China, Colombia, Ecuador, Iceland, Japan, Mexico,
Namibia (for WT/DS401), Norway (for WT/DS400), and the United States have reserved their rights
to participate in the Panel proceedings as third parties.