GD/188

Canada/Japan: Tariff on Imports of Spruce, Pine, Fir (SPF) Dimension Lumber

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Other titles

Japan SPF Dimension Lumber (Source: GATT Analytical Index)

Parties

Complainant
Canada
Respondent
Japan
Third Parties
New Zealand
EEC
EEC-12

Products at Issue

Products at issue
Lumber
Type of product
Non-agricultural
Product sub-type
Wood products

Related disputes

GATT
WTO

Key legal aspects

Legal basis
  • GATT Article XXIII:1
Claims raised
  • GATT Article I:1
Defences raised
  • n.a.

Adjudicators

Type Panel
Chairperson Pierre Pescatore (Luxembourg)
Other members Alejandro de la Peña (Mexico), Richard Senti (Switzerland)

Report

Type Panel
Legal basis at issue
  • GATT Article XXIII:1
Claims at issue
  • GATT Article I:1
Defences at issue
  • n.a.
No of Pages (total / legal reasoning) 40
  • -
  • No inconsistency found
  • -

Timeline

Request for consultations
Request for establishment
Establishment
Composition
Report
Adoption of report

Outcome

Outcome of the proceedings
Report adopted
Additional Info L/6470 (26/04/1989) Canada/Japan: Tariffs on Imports of Spruce, Pine, Fir (SPF) Dimension Lumber – Report of the Panel: The Panel noted that "dimension lumber" as defined by Canada was a concept extraneous to the Japanese Tariff. It was a standard applied by the Canadian industry which appeared to have some equivalent in the United States and in Japan itself, but it could not be considered for that reason alone as a category for tariff classification purposes, nor did it belong to any internationally accepted customs classification. The Panel concluded therefore that reliance by Canada on the concept of dimension lumber was not an appropriate basis for establishing "likeness" of products under Article 1:1 of the General Agreement. In these circumstances the Panel was not in a position to pursue further the questions relating to the concept of "like products" and therefore could not establish that the tariff treatment of Canadian dimension lumber applied by Japan was inconsistent with Article 1:1 of the General Agreement.

C/M/235 (22/08/1989) Minutes of Council Meeting (19/07/1989) Adopted the Panel Report L/6470 of 26/04/1989 and also considered document L/6528 (20/06/1989) Communication from Canada (16/06/1989) on concerns over the interpretations in the findings of the Panel report.