Antigua and Barbuda vs. U.S. Set for Arbitration

October 17, 2007

Antigua and Barbuda are seeking $3.4 billion in trade sanctions against the United States and will today in Geneva outline its case to World Trade Organization arbitrators in this ongoing online gambling dispute.

In early October, the Antigua government filed a motion with the WTO that outlined the reasoning behind why it thought that lifting copyright law with the U.S. was the only fair way to compensate for its loses over online gambling.

A three member panel will hear both sides’ arguments today and should have their final decision by the end of November.

According to Antigua’s lead attorney Mark Mendel, “So far, we have been the only ones willing to negotiate, and it takes two to get a deal done. That is what we have always wanted to happen. Hopefully, they will come around and see that it is the best and right thing to do.”

Finance and Economy Minister Dr Errol Cort is due in Washington for meetings involving the International Monetary Fund /World Bank and said he will be watching the Geneva talks intently. He wants to know what direction to proceed in when meeting with the United States Trade Representative’s (USTR) Office.

Cort was quoted as saying, “So I am still hopeful that we will meet when I go to Washington but I am awaiting initially the first impressions from our representatives in Geneva at the end of the first day of the hearing on Thursday.”

The WTO ruled this summer that it was illegal to target offshore gambling when it passed the UIGEA last October and not apply the same rules to U.S. operators. As a result, not only has Antigua and Barbuda filed a claim but also Australia, Canada, Costa Rica, India, Japan, Macau and the member states of the European Union have filed their own compensation claims.

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