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This article addresses certain competition‐related issues that parties to a trans‐national merger and acquisition (M&A) transaction must face, preferably during the strategic planning phase. The ultimate focus will be on the suitability vel non of the World Trade Organization (WTO) serving, as has been proposed by some scholars and political bodies, as a form of supranational competition law authority with respect to merger clearance. The conclusion reached is that the WTO is institutionally ill‐suited for such a role but can, nonetheless, perform a useful albeit considerably more modest function as an enforcer of several purely procedural reforms suggested herein.

This paper aims to examine changes in the jurisprudence of the World Trade Organization Appellate Body in three areas of law (judicial economy, the identification of the measure to be examined under Article XX of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade and other duties and import charges), and concludes that the Appellate Body failed to acknowledge and cogently explain in each of these areas, the changes it made.

The paper asks two key questions: what has the Appellate Body done when its own rulings in past cases stood in the way of a legally sound ruling in a new case, and how should it handle such instances in the future?

The paper concludes that all changes in jurisprudence reduce predictability, but that predictability suffers even more when the changes are made in disguise because panels and Members then receive confused or conflicting normative signals.

The paper argues that the Appellate Body should seek consistency of jurisprudence wherever possible. It should handle changes in jurisprudence more transparently and adopt internal procedures that make the need for them less likely.

There are several agreements within the framework of the World Trade Organization that have an impact on the issue of food safety. These include the prohibition against quantitative restrictions of GATT 94, the general exceptions of Article XX, the Agreement on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures, the Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade, and the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of International Property Rights. This chapter analyzes the primary disputes pertaining directly or tangentially to matters of food safety and representation under each of these agreements that were impaneled under the dispute settlement understanding. Particular attention is given to the EC/Hormones and the EC/genetically modified organisms (GMO) cases.

Countries have differences in competition policies, which are cause for friction in international trade and investment. This paper discusses those issues and develops a model to try to explain the willingness of countries to participate in a cooperative competition policy. The model suggests that countries which are economically advanced, active in trade, and already involved in trade regimes are most likely to cooperate in competition policy.

A principle reason for the inability of the General Agreements on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) to serve as the vehicle for international trade liberalization was that it was the protocol for the establishment of the International Trade Organization. It was never intended to become a functioning institution. As such, it did not have a well-designed system for the settlement of trade disputes. At least partially because the GATT was not intended to function as an institution, an arguably excessive reliance on consensus emerged as the vehicle for the resolution of trade disputes. A consensus to accept the recommendations of a dispute panel became the standard for resolution under the GATT. Because the defendant could always object to implementation of the panel's recommendation, thus denying consensus, successful resolution of disputes were relatively infrequent. In the 47 years, during which the GATT was the principle international trade forum, 101 panel reports were adopted. Given that it is possible to file disputes on the basis of nullification and impairment of expected benefits, which is a considerably weaker standard than the allegation of a legal breach, it is apparent that the ineffectiveness of the dispute resolution mechanism was a deterrent to the filing of complaints. As the GATT increased in membership and pressures to address increasingly complex trade issues (intellectual property rights and agricultural subsidies, for example) emerged, it became apparent that the GATT could be undermined by an inability to resolve disputes.

The purpose of this paper is to present and discuss Kansei engineering (KE), which uses a unique ergonomic technology to produce a new product which fits to consumers' feelings and demands. It is a consumer‐oriented product development method based on the consumer mind. It has been applied to realize several new Kansei products so far.

KE is sometimes able to create an invention, but mostly it is powerful to create more comfortable and affective products or services to the customers. KE utilizes psychological methods to grasp the customer's feelings, and the data obtained by this method are analyzed using multivariate statistical analyses which are transferred to the design domain (design specifications).

It was found that a customer has a hierarchy of values of his/her life. All people, from children to the elderly, want to enhance their quality of life. Having qualified products and services, including service men's smiles and greetings is an important factor.

KE is spreading out in the world at present. The paper (witten by the pioneer and founder of KE) tells “a story” about the methods and procedures to create a new Kansei product and refers to the implications of Kansei/affective engineering.