As we reported here, on July 26 the WTO established a panel to hear a dispute over Chinese measures restricting imports of canola seeds from Canada (DS589). Today, the WTO announced that the panel in the case was composed on November 10 after the agreement of the parties on the three panelists. The panelists are:

Chairperson:

• Mr Mohammad Saeed, from Pakistan, who has been a panelist on five completed panels, including three which dealt with SPS issues.

Members:

• Mr Gudmundur Helgason, from Iceland, who has been a panelist on three completed panels, including one which dealt with SPS issues.
• Ms Jan Yves Natalie Remy, from St. Lucia, who is currently serving as a panelist in the Turkey - Duties on Air Conditioning Machines dispute (DS573) which is suspended under DSU Article 12.12, and previously worked in the Appellate Body Secretariat.

The announcement also notes that Australia, Brazil, the EU, India, Japan, Norway, Russia, Singapore, Chinese Taipei, the U.S., and Viet Nam have reserved their rights to participate in the panel proceedings as third parties

In recent years, it has generally taken somewhere between one and a quarter years and just over two years from panel composition to the circulation of the panel report to the public.