                        TITLE 19--CUSTOMS DUTIES
 
               CHAPTER 22--URUGUAY ROUND TRADE AGREEMENTS
 
 SUBCHAPTER I--APPROVAL OF, AND GENERAL PROVISIONS RELATING TO, URUGUAY 
                            ROUND AGREEMENTS
 
       Part C--Uruguay Round Implementation and Dispute Settlement
 
Sec. 3537. Access to WTO dispute settlement process


(a) In general

    Whenever the United States is a party before a dispute settlement 
panel established pursuant to Article 6 of the Dispute Settlement 
Understanding, the Trade Representative shall, at each stage of the 
proceeding before the panel or the Appellate Body, consult with the 
appropriate congressional committees, the petitioner (if any) under 
section 2412(a) of this title with respect to the matter that is the 
subject of the proceeding, and relevant private sector advisory 
committees established under section 2155 of this title, and shall 
consider the views of representatives of appropriate interested private 
sector and nongovernmental organizations concerning the matter.

(b) Notice and public comment

    In any proceeding described in subsection (a) of this section, the 
Trade Representative shall--
        (1) promptly after requesting the establishment of a panel, or 
    receiving a request from another WTO member country for the 
    establishment of a panel, publish a notice in the Federal Register--
            (A) identifying the initial parties to the dispute,
            (B) setting forth the major issues raised by the country 
        requesting the establishment of a panel and the legal basis of 
        the complaint,
            (C) identifying the specific measures, including any State 
        or Federal law cited in the request for establishment of the 
        panel, and
            (D) seeking written comments from the public concerning the 
        issues raised in the dispute; and

        (2) take into account any advice received from appropriate 
    congressional committees and relevant private sector advisory 
    committees referred to in subsection (a) of this section, and 
    written comments received pursuant to paragraph (1)(D), in preparing 
    United States submissions to the panel or the Appellate Body.

(c) Access to documents

    In each proceeding described in subsection (a) of this section, the 
Trade Representative shall--
        (1) make written submissions by the United States referred to in 
    subsection (b) of this section available to the public promptly 
    after they are submitted to the panel or Appellate Body, except that 
    the Trade Representative is authorized to withhold from disclosure 
    any information contained in such submissions identified by the 
    provider of the information as proprietary information or 
    information treated as confidential by a foreign government;
        (2) request each other party to the dispute to permit the Trade 
    Representative to make that party's written submissions to the panel 
    or the Appellate Body available to the public; and
        (3) make each report of the panel or the Appellate Body 
    available to the public promptly after it is circulated to WTO 
    members, and inform the public of such availability.

(d) Requests for nonconfidential summaries

    In any dispute settlement proceeding conducted pursuant to the 
Dispute Settlement Understanding, the Trade Representative shall request 
each party to the dispute to provide nonconfidential summaries of its 
written submissions, if that party has not made its written submissions 
public, and shall make those summaries available to the public promptly 
after receiving them.

(e) Public file

    The Trade Representative shall maintain a file accessible to the 
public on each dispute settlement proceeding to which the United States 
is a party that is conducted pursuant to the Dispute Settlement 
Understanding. The file shall include all United States submissions in 
the proceeding and a listing of any submissions to the Trade 
Representative from the public with respect to the proceeding, as well 
as the report of the dispute settlement panel and the report of the 
Appellate Body.

(Pub. L. 103-465, title I, Sec. 127, Dec. 8, 1994, 108 Stat. 4835.)

                          Codification

    Section is comprised of section 127 of Pub. L. 103-465. Subsec. (f) 
of section 127 of Pub. L. 103-465 amended section 2155 of this title.
