Just Trade: A New Covenant Linking Trade and Human Rights

About the Book

Documents Annex: http://www.nyupress.org/justtradeannex/index.html
It is generally assumed that pro-trade laws are not good for human rights, and legislation that protects human rights hampers vibrant international trade. In a bold departure from this canon, Just Trade makes a case for reaching a middleground between these two fields, acknowledging their coexistence and the significant points at which they overlap. Using actual examples from many of the thirty-five nations of the Western Hemisphere, the authors—one a human rights scholar and the other a trade law expert—carefully combine their knowledge to examine human rights policies
throughout the world, never overlooking the very real human rights problems that arise from international trade. However, instead of viewing the two kinds of law as isolated, polar, and sometimes hostile opposites, Berta Esperanza Hernández-Truyol and Stephen J. Powell make powerful suggestions for how these intersections may be navigated to promote an international marketplace that embraces both liberal trade and
liberal protection of human rights.

About the Author :

Berta Esperanza Hernández-Truyol is Levin, Mabie & Levin Professor of Law at Levin College of Law, University of Florida. She is editor of Moral Imperialism: A Critical Anthology (NYU Press).

Stephen Joseph Powell is senior lecturer in law and director of the International Trade Law Program at Levin College of Law, University of Florida. Prior to his arrival at UF, he implemented U.S. trade laws as chief counsel for import administration at the U.S. Department of Commerce.

Review :
"Although highly developed international regimes promoting free trade and advancing human rights are often mischaracterized as mutually incompatible, this excellent study clearly demonstrates their common normative and institutional foundations as well as the complementarity of their respective purposes. In its convincing argument, Just Trade invites us to celebrate and utilize the capacity of free trade and human rights to advance a common agenda." - Thomas Franck,co-author of Law and Practice of the United Nations "Professors Powell and Hernandez-Truyol have proposed an ambitious effort to bridge longstanding differences between the business and human rights communities by incorporating human rights and environmental obligations in trade agreements. Their book offers a multitude of new ideas on how a middle ground could be achieved, reflecting the authors' understanding of trade agreements and the challenges of harnessing trade's worldwide power for the advancement of human rights. Whatever one's views on the feasibility of a & new covenant' linking trade and human rights, there is always value in a comprehensive, in-depth discussion of the issues involved. And one cannot help but be impressed by the authors' passionate commitment to constructing a new path forward and their understanding of international law." - Warren H. Maruyama,Partner, Hogan & Hartson LLP (formerly General Counsel, US Trade Representative 2007-2009) "Hernandez-Truyol's and Powell's collective expertise has yielded a highly readable effort designed to end the trade regime's 'splendid isolation' from the rest of international law, and especially human rights law. Their text, intended for classroom use, will do much to lessen the unfortunate disconnect between these legal sub-specialities. Theirs is not an idealistic diatribe against the WTO but an honest attempt to marry the undeniable legitimacy of the human rights ideal with the equally undeniable economic benefits of using the law to advance states' comparative advantage. The authors' manifold (and sometimes surprising) examples of the connections between the trade and human rights 'borderlands' yield prescriptions for a more humane and sustainable form of trade liberalization." - Jose Alvarez,author of International Organizations as Law-makers ""The authors intend the book to be a catalyst for discussion and development of policy coherence in these two areas [trade rules and human rights]. They should be applauded for an ambitious, even courageous, foray into this minefield and for a carefully developed, thought-provoking presentation... As a labor rights practitioner, I found a number of these ideas thought-provoking." (Industrial and Labor Relations Review) "This work is an ambitious attempt to redefine the relationship between international trade law and the legal and moral principles of international human rights. . .an impressive book that constructs a noteworthy case regarding how trade and human rights law can be reconstituted so that they are largely coterminous and mutually supportive." (CHOICE)