Clear The Air News Tobacco Blog Rotating Header Image

September 20th, 2013:

Indonesia brings fifth WTO challenge to Australia tobacco laws | Reuters

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/09/20/ah-wto-australia-tobacco-idUSL
5N0HG2QD20130920

UPDATE 1-Indonesia brings fifth WTO challenge to Australia tobacco laws

Fri Sep 20, 2013 12:38pm EDT

By Tom Miles

(Reuters) – Indonesia launched a complaint against Australia’s stringent
tobacco packaging laws on Friday, becoming the fifth country to raise
the restrictions at the World Trade Organization.

Australia has forced cigarette manufacturers to sell their products in
drab green packets with no colourful logos since late 2012, as part of a
health drive to cut down on the number of smokers.

Tobacco companies say their trademark rights are being infringed by the
restrictions, which are widely seen as a test case for other schemes
around the world.

Australia’s laws broke trade agreements on technical barriers to trade
and intellectual property rights, Indonesia said, according to a
statement from the WTO.

Ukraine, Honduras, Dominican Republic and Cuba have already filed
complaints at the WTO about Australia’s laws.

The earliest WTO ruling on the cases could come around mid-2014, with a
possible final appeal judgment in the second half of the year.

The case could take months longer, however, if the other complainants
decide to wait for Indonesia to catch up, and some WTO disputes have
dragged on for years