THE U.S. SPECIAL 301 PROCESS
By Warner Rose, staff writer
Special 301 is the part of U.S. trade law that requires the
U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) to identify countries that deny
adequate protection for intellectual property rights (IPR) or
that deny fair and equitable market access for U.S. persons who
rely on IPR.
Under Special 301, countries that have the most egregious
acts, policies, or practices, or whose acts, policies, or
practices have the greatest adverse impact (actual or potential)
on relevant U.S. products and are not engaged in good faith
negotiations to address these problems, must be identified as
priority foreign countries. If so identified, the country could face bilateral U.S. trade sanctions if changes are not made that address U.S. concerns.
USTR must decide which countries to identify each year in a
Special 301 review that is issued within 30 days after the
release of the United States' annual National Trade Estimate
Report, generally done around March 31. If a trading partner is
identified as a priority foreign country, USTR must decide within
the following 30 days whether to initiate an investigation of
those acts, policies, and practices that were the basis for the
identification.
Within six months of the date that the investigation is
initiated, USTR must determine after investigation and
consultations if the circumstances that prompted the original
action still exist. If the determination is affirmative, USTR
must decide what action, if any, to take. The actions can include
bilateral trade sanctions under Section 301 of the Trade Act of
1974.
The deadline for making this determination can be extended
to nine months from the date of initiation if USTR decides that
complex or complicated issues are involved or if substantial
progress is being made.
The USTR has created a "Priority Watch List" and "Watch List" under Special
301 provisions. Placement of a trading partner on the Priority Watch List
or Watch List indiciates that particular problems exist in that country with
respect to IPR protection or enforcement or market access for persons
relying on intellectual property. Countries placed on the Priority Watch
List are the focus of increased bilateral attention concerning the problem
areas.
Out-of-cycle reviews can be,
and often are, conducted at any time during the year. These
reviews are the same as the regular annual review: priority
foreign countries are identified, and other countries can be
added or removed from the watch lists.
The U.S. government is also making increased use of the
World Trade Organization (WTO) dispute settlement system for IPR
disputes with countries that are WTO members.
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