Globalization and Local Adaptation in International Trade Law

This breakthrough volume draws on case studies from the Pacific Rim andemploys the concept of selective adaptation to explain the unevenreception of international law in local contexts.

Drawing on case studies from the Pacific Rim, this book traces the selective adaptation of international trade law to local conditions.

The trade principles of Western liberal democracies are at the coreof international trade law regimes and standards. Are non-Westernsocieties uniformly adopting international standards, or are theyadapting them to local norms and cultural values?

This volume presents a new conceptual approach – the paradigmof selective adaptation – to explore and explain the reception ofinternational trade law in the Pacific Rim. Building on a conceptualdiscussion of the normative and institutional contexts forinternational law, the contributors draw on examples from China, Japan,Thailand, and North America to show that formal acceptance ofinternational trade standards through accession to the World TradeOrganization and the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade does notnecessarily translate into uniform enforcement and acceptance at thelocal level. This book provides compelling evidence that non-uniformcompliance will be a legitimate outcome of the globalization ofinternational trade law.