The Australia-European Union Free Trade Agreement

Abstract:

This book gathers a selection of peer-reviewed chapters reflecting on the Australia-European Union Free Trade Agreement (AEUFTA). Since 18 June 2018, ten rounds of negotiations for a AEUFTA have been held in a constructive atmosphere, showing a shared commitment to move forward with this ambitious and comprehensive agreement. After a lengthy and arduous process interrupted by the United Kingdom’s withdrawal from the European Union (EU), the United States’ hesitations regarding the EU’s global strategy and the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, the negotiations between Australia and the European Union finally appear to be nearing completion.

In challenging times, both parties share a commitment to a positive trade agenda, and to the idea that good trade agreements benefit both sides by boosting jobs, growth and investment. This book explores the challenges, achievements and missed opportunities in the AEUFTA negotiation process, and examines current legal and political relations between the EU, its Member States and Australia. Furthermore, it examines in detail a wide and diverse range of negotiated areas, including digital trade, services, intellectual property rules, trade remedies and investment screening, as well as dispute settlement mechanisms. Lastly, it sheds light on the likely nature of future commercial relations between Australia and the EU.

Table of Contents:

1. Overview of the Australia–European Union Free Trade Agreement | Marc Bungenberg & Andrew Mitchell
2. Existing Legal and Political Relations Between the EU, Its Member States, and Australia | Jürgen Bröhmer
3. The Framework of Bilateral Trade Agreements | Michael Hahn
4. Services Trade Liberalisation in the Australia—EU FTA: Progress But No Quantum-Leap | Charlotte Sieber-Gasser
5. Digital Trade in the Australia—EU FTA: A Future-Forward Perspective | Neha Mishra
6. Investment Screening and Market Access in the AEUFTA | Jarrod Hepburn
7. Panel Procedures Under the Proposed EU-Australia FTA | Angshuman Hazarika
8. Investment Protection in the AEUFTA: Missed Opportunities or Strategic Exclusions? | Esmé Shirlow
9. The Competition Chapter in the EU-Australia FTA | Mareike Fröhlich
10. European Trade Policy and the Regulation of Subsidies: What Can We Expect from the EU-Australia FTA? | Philipp Reinhold