  
  
WT/DS537/10  
 
29 April 2019  
(19-2930) Page: 1/8 
  Original: English  
 
 CANADA - MEASURES GO VERNING THE SALE OF WINE  
COMMUNICATION FROM T HE PANEL   
The following communication, dated 24 April 2019 , was received from the Chairperson of the Panel 
with the request that it be circulated to the Dispute Settlement Body.  
 
_______________  
 
 
Paragraph 2(5) of the Working Procedures for the Panel proceedings in the dispute Canada – 
Measures Governing the Sale of Wine (DS537) provides:  
 
The Panel shall circulate its Working Procedures and timetable, and any 
amendments thereto,  to WTO Members through the DS document series 
for this dispute.  
Accordingly, p lease find enclosed the Working Procedures adopted by the Panel on 15  April 2019.   
 
I would be grateful if you would circulate this document to the DSB.  
 
 
 
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  WT/DS537/10  
 
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WORKING PROCEDURES OF  THE PANEL  
 
Adopted on 15 April 2019  
 
General  
 
1. (1) In this proceeding, the Panel shall follow the relevant provisions of the Understanding 
on Rules and Procedures Governing the Settlement of Disputes ("DSU"). In addition, the 
following Working Procedures apply.  
(2) The Panel reserves the right to modify t hese procedures, as well as any additional 
working procedures, as necessary, after consultation with the parties.  
Confidentiality  
2. (1) The deliberations of the Panel and the documents submitted to it shall be kept 
confidential. The parties and third part ies shall treat as confidential information that is 
submitted to the Panel which the submitting party has designated as confidential.  
(2) Nothing in the DSU or in these Working Procedures shall preclude a party or third party 
from disclosing statements of  its own positions to the public.  
(3) If a party submits a confidential version of its written submissions to the Panel, it shall 
also, upon request of a Member, provide a non -confidential summary of the information 
contained in its submissions that could  be disclosed to the public.  
(4) Upon request, the Panel may adopt appropriate additional procedures for the treatment 
and handling of confidential information after consultation with the parties.  
(5) The Panel shall circulate its Working Procedures and timetable, and any amendments 
thereto, to WTO Members through the DS document series for this dispute.  
Submissions  
 
3. (1) Before the first substantive meeting of the Panel with the parties, each party shall 
submit a written submission in which it presents the facts of the case and its arguments, in 
accordance with the timetable adopted by the Panel.  
(2) Each party shall also  submit to the Panel, before the second substantive meeting of the 
Panel, a written rebuttal, in accordance with the timetable adopted by the Panel.  
(3) Each third party that chooses to make a written submission before the first substantive 
meeting of the  Panel with the parties shall do so in accordance with the timetable adopted by 
the Panel.  
(4) The Panel may invite the parties or third parties to make  additional submissions during 
the proceeding, including with respect to requests for preliminary rulings in accordance with 
paragraph 4 below.  
Preliminary rulings  
4. (1) If Canada considers that the Panel should make a ruling before the issuance of the 
Report that certain measures or claims in the panel request or Australia's first written 
submission are not properly before the Panel, the following procedure applies. Exceptions to 
this procedure shall be granted upon a showing of good cause.  
a. Canada shall  submit any such request for a preliminary ruling at the earliest possible 
opportunity and in any event no later than in its first written submission to the Panel.   WT/DS537/10  
 
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  Australia shall submit its response to the request before the first substantive meeting of 
the Panel, at a time to be determined by the Panel in light of the request.  
b. The Panel may issue a preliminary ruling on the issues raised in such a preliminary ruling 
request before, during or after the first substantive meeting, or the Panel may defer a 
ruling on the issues raised by a preliminary ruling request until it issues its Report to the 
parties. The Panel shall inform the parties of the time at which it intends to issue a 
preliminary ruling. Any preliminary ruling issued prior to the issuance of th e Report shall 
become an integral part of the Report.  
c. If the Panel finds it appropriate to issue a preliminary ruling before the issuance of its 
Report, the Panel may provide reasons for the ruling at the time that the ruling is made, 
or subsequently in i ts Report.   
d. Any request for such a preliminary ruling by Canada before the first meeting, and any 
subsequent submissions of the parties in relation thereto before the first meeting, shall be 
served on all third parties. The Panel may provide all third par ties with an opportunity to 
provide comments on any such request, either in their submissions as provided for in the 
timetable or separately. Any preliminary ruling issued by the Panel before the first 
substantive meeting on whether certain measures or cla ims are properly before the Panel 
shall be communicated to all third parties.  
(2) This procedure is without prejudice to the parties' right to request other types of 
preliminary or procedural rulings during the proceeding, and to the procedures that the P anel 
may follow with respect to such requests.  
Evidence  
5. (1) Each party shall submit all evidence to the Panel no later than during the first 
substantive meeting, except evidence necessary for purposes of rebuttal, or evidence 
necessary for answers to qu estions or comments on answers provided by the other party. 
Additional exceptions may be granted upon a showing of good cause.  
(2) If any new evidence has been admitted upon a showing of good cause, the Panel shall 
accord the other party an appropriate pe riod of time to comment on the new evidence 
submitted.  
6. (1) If the original language of an exhibit or portion thereof is not a WTO working language, 
the submitting party or third party shall simultaneously submit a translation of the exhibit or 
relevant portion into the WTO working language of the submission. The Panel may grant 
reasonable extensions of time for the translation of exhibits upon a showing of good cause.  
(2) Any objection as to the accuracy of a translation should be raised promptly in wri ting, 
preferably no later than the next submission or meeting (whichever occurs earlier) following 
the submission which contains the translation in question. Any objection shall be accompanied 
by an explanation of the grounds for the objection and an alter native translation.  
7. (1) To facilitate the maintenance of the record of the dispute and maximize the clarity of 
submissions, each party and third party shall sequentially number its exhibits throughout the 
course of the dispute, indicating the submittin g Member and the number of each exhibit on its 
cover page. Exhibits submitted by Australia should be numbered AUS -1, AUS -2, etc. Exhibits 
submitted by Canada should be numbered CAN -1, CAN -2, etc. If the last exhibit in connection 
with the first submission was numbered AUS -5 or CAN -5, the first exhibit in connection with 
the next submission thus would be numbered AUS -6 or CAN -6.  
(2) Each party shall provide an updated list of exhibits (in Word or Excel format) together 
with each of its submissions, oral sta tements, and responses to questions.  
(3) If a party submits a document that has already been submitted as an exhibit by the 
other party, it should explain why it is submitting that document again.  WT/DS537/10  
 
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  (4) If a party includes a hyperlink to the content of a web site in a submission and intends 
that the cited content form part of the official record, the cited content of the website shall be 
provided in the form of an exhibit.  
Editorial Guide  
8. In order to facilitate the work of the Panel, each party and third party is invited to make its 
submissions in accordance with the WTO Editorial Guide for Panel Submissions (electronic copy 
provided).  
Questions  
 
9. The Panel may pose questions to the parties and third parties at any time, including:  
a. Before any me eting, the Panel may send written questions, or a list of topics it intends 
to pursue orally during a meeting. The Panel may ask different or additional questions at the 
meeting.   
b. The Panel may put questions to the parties and third parties orally duri ng a meeting, 
and in writing following the meeting, as provided for in paragraphs 15 and 2 4 below.  
Substantive meetings  
 
10. (1) The Panel shall meet in closed session. The Panel may , however,  open its substantive 
meetings with the parties to the public,  subject to appropriate procedures to be adopted by the Panel 
after consulting with the parties.  
11. The parties shall be present at the meetings only when invited by the Panel to appear before 
it.  
12. (1) Each party has the right to determine the composi tion of its own delegation when 
meeting with the Panel.  
(2) Each party shall have the responsibility for all members of its delegation and shall 
ensure that each member of its delegation acts in accordance with the DSU and these Working 
Procedures.  
13. Each party shall provide to the Panel the list of members of its delegation no later than 
5.00 p.m. (Geneva time) three working days before the first day of each meeting with the Panel.  
14. To allow sufficient time to ensure availability of interpreters, a  request for interpretation by 
any party should be made to the Panel preferably at the organizational stage or, at the latest, one 
month prior to the meeting.  
15. The first substantive meeting of the Panel with the parties shall be conducted as follows:  
a. The Panel shall invite Australia to make an opening statement to present its case first. 
Subsequently, the Panel shall invite Canada to present its point of view. Before each party 
takes the floor, it shall provide the Panel and other participants at the meeting with a 
provisional written version of its statement. If interpretation is needed, each party shall 
provide additional copies for the interpreters.  
b. Each party should avoid lengthy repetition of the arguments in its submissions. Each 
party is inv ited to limit the duration of its opening statement to not more than 60 minutes. If 
either party considers that it requires more time for its opening statement, it should inform 
the Panel and the other party at least 10 days prior to the meeting, together with an estimate 
of the expected duration of its statement. The Panel will accord equal time to the other party.   
c. After the conclusion of the opening statements, the Panel shall give each party the 
opportunity to make comments or ask the other party qu estions.  WT/DS537/10  
 
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  d. The Panel may subsequently pose questions to the parties.  
e. Once the questioning has concluded, the Panel shall afford each party an opportunity to 
present a brief closing statement, with Australia presenting its statement first. Before each 
party takes the floor, it shall provide the Panel and other participants at the meeting with a 
provisional written version of its closing statement, if available.  
f. Following the meeting:  
i. Each party shall submit a final written version of its opening  statement no later than 
5.00 p.m. (Geneva time) on the first working day following the meeting. At the same 
time, each party should also submit a final written version of any prepared closing 
statement that it delivered at the meeting.  
ii. Each party shall s end in writing, within the timeframe established by the Panel before 
the end of the meeting, any questions to the other party to which it wishes to receive 
a response in writing.  
iii. The Panel shall send in writing, within the timeframe established by the Pan el before 
the end of the meeting, any questions to the parties to which it wishes to receive a 
response in writing.  
iv. Each party shall respond in writing to the questions from the Panel, and to any 
questions posed by the other party, within the time -frame e stablished by the Panel 
before the end of the meeting.  
16. The second substantive meeting of the Panel with the parties shall be conducted in the same 
manner as the first substantive meeting with the Panel, except that Canada shall be given the 
opportunity  to present its oral statement first. If Canada chooses not to avail itself of that right, it 
shall inform the Panel and the other party no later than 5.00 p.m. (Geneva time) three working days 
before the meeting. In that case, Australia shall present its opening statement first, followed by 
Canada. The party that presented its opening statement first shall present its closing statement first.  
17. Each party shall be given the opportunity to comment on the responses to questions provided 
by the other party after the second substantive meeting, in accordance with the timetable adopted 
by the Panel . 
Third parties  
 
18. Third parties shall receive the parties' first and second written submissions, written responses 
to questions and comments  thereon , and related exhibits.  
19. Third parties shall be invited to attend the entirety of the first and the second substantive 
meetings between the parties and the Panel , unless a party requests otherwise . 
20. The Panel may open the third -party session of the first s ubstantive meeting to the public for 
those third parties wishing to make their statements public, subject to appropriate procedures to be 
adopted by the Panel after consulting  with the parties.  
21. (1) Each third party has the right to determine the compos ition of its own delegation when 
meeting with the Panel.  
(2) Each third party shall have the responsibility for all members of its delegation and shall 
ensure that each member of its delegation acts in accordance with the DSU and these Working 
Procedures.   
22. To allow sufficient time to ensure availability of interpreters, a request for interpretation by 
any third party should be made to the Panel preferably upon receiving the Working Procedures and 
timetable for the proceeding or, at the latest, one mont h prior to the meeting.  WT/DS537/10  
 
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  23. (1) Each third party may present its views orally during a session of the first substantive 
meeting with the parties set aside for that purpose.  
(2) Each third party shall indicate to the Panel whether it intends to make an ora l statement 
during the third -party session of the first substantive meeting, along with the list of members 
of its delegation, in advance of this session and no later than 5.00 p.m. (Geneva time) three 
working days before the third -party session of the mee ting with the Panel.  
(3) The Panel, in consultation with the parties, may grant third parties the opportunity to 
intervene outside the third -party session of the first substantive meeting where it considers 
that such interventions are appropriate and do no t unduly interfere with the proceedings.  
(4) Moreover, the Panel, in consultation with the parties, may grant third parties the 
opportunity to intervene during the second substantive meeting where it considers that such 
interventions are appropriate and d o not unduly interfere with the proceedings.  
24. The third -party session of the first substantive meeting shall be conducted as follows:  
a. All parties and third parties may be present during the entirety of this session.  
b. The Panel shall first hear the oral statements of the third parties. Each third party making 
an oral statement at the third -party session shall provide the Panel and othe r participants 
with a provisional written version of its statement before it takes the floor. If interpretation 
of a third party's oral statement is needed, that third party shall provide additional copies 
for the interpreters.  
c. Each third party should limit the duration of its statement to 15 minutes and avoid 
repetition of the arguments already in its submission. If a third party considers that it 
requires more time for its opening statement, it should inform the Panel and the parties 
at least 10 days before the meeting, together with an estimate of the expected duration 
of its statement. The Panel will accord equal time to all third parties for their statements.   
d. After the third parties have made their statements, the parties shall be given the 
opportunity to pose questions to any third party for clarification on any matter raised in 
that third party's submission or statement.  
e. The Panel may subsequently pose questions to any third party.  
f. Following the third -party session:  
i. Each third party  shall submit the final written version of its oral statement, no later 
than 5.00 p.m. (Geneva time) on the first working day following the meeting.  
ii. Each party may send in writing, within the timeframe to be established by the Panel 
before the end of the meeting, any questions to a third party or parties to which it 
wishes to receive a response in writing.  
iii. The Panel may send in writing, within the timeframe to be established by the Panel 
before the end of the meeting, any questions to a third par ty or parties to which it 
wishes to receive a response in writing.  
iv. Each third party choosing to do so shall respond in writing to written questions from 
the Panel or a party, within a timeframe established by the Panel before the end of the 
meeting.  
Descriptive part and executive summaries  
 
25. The description of the arguments of the parties and third parties in the descriptive part of the 
Panel report shall consist of executive summaries provided by the parties and third parties, which 
shall be annexe d as addenda to the report. These executive summaries shall not in any way serve WT/DS537/10  
 
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  as a substitute for the submissions of the parties and third parties in the Panel's examination of the 
case.  
26. Each party shall submit two integrated executive summaries. T he first integrated executive 
summary shall summarize the facts and arguments as presented to the Panel in the party's first 
written submission, its first oral statement, and if possible, its responses to questions following the 
first substantive meeting. The second integrated executive summary shall summarize its second 
written submission, its second oral statement, and if possible, its responses to the second set of 
questions and comments thereon following the second substantive meeting. The timing of the  
submission of these two integrated executive summaries shall be indicated in the timetable adopted 
by the Panel.  
27. Each integrated executive summary shall be limited to no more than 15 pages.  
28. The Panel may request the parties and third parties to provide executive summaries of facts 
and arguments presented in any other submissions to the Panel for which a deadline may not be 
specified in the timetable.  
29. Each third party shall submit an integrated executive summary of its arguments as presented 
in its written submission and statement in accordance with the timetable adopted by the Panel. This 
integrated executive summary may also include a summary of responses to questions, if relevant. 
The executive summary to be provided by each third party shal l not exceed six  pages. If a third -
party submission and/or oral statement does not exceed six pages in total, this may serve as the 
executive summary of that third party's arguments.  
Interim review  
 
30. Following issuance of the interim report, each party may submit a written request to review 
precise aspects of the interim report and request a further meeting with the Panel, in accordance 
with the timetable adopted by the Panel. The right to request such a meeting shall be exercised no 
later than at the ti me the written request for review is submitted.  
31. If no further meeting with the Panel is requested, each party may submit written comments 
on the other party's written request for review, in accordance with the timetable adopted by the 
Panel. Such comm ents shall be limited to commenting on the other party's written request for 
review.  
Interim and Final Report  
32. The interim report, as well as the final report before its official circulation, shall be kept strictly 
confidential and shall not be disclosed.  
Service of documents  
 
33. The following procedures regarding service of documents apply to all documents submitted by 
parties and third parties during the proceeding:  
a. Each party and third party shall submit all documents to the Panel by submitti ng them via 
the Digital Dispute Settlement Registry (DDSR) by 5.00 p.m. (Geneva time) on the due 
dates established by the Panel. The electronic version uploaded into the DDSR shall 
constitute the official version for the purposes of submission deadlines an d the record of 
the dispute. Upload of a document into the DDSR shall constitute electronic service on the 
Panel, the other party, and the third parties.  
b. By 5.00 p.m. (Geneva time) the next working day following the electronic submission, 
each party and th ird party shall submit one paper copy of all documents it submits to the 
Panel, including the exhibits, with the DS  Registry (office No. 2047). The DS  Registrar 
shall stamp the documents with the date and time of the submission. If any documents 
are in a f ormat that is impractical to submit as a paper copy, then the party may submit 
such documents by email or on a CD -ROM, DVD or USB key.  WT/DS537/10  
 
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  c. The Panel shall provide the parties with the Descriptive Part of the Report, the Interim 
Report and the Final Report, as well as all other documents or communications issued by 
the Panel during the proceeding, via the DDSR.  
d. If the parties or third parties have any questions or technical difficulties relating to the 
DDSR, they are invited to consult the DDSR User Guide (elec tronic copy provided) and if 
necessary contact the DS Registry ( DSRegistry@wto.org ).  
e. If any party or third party is unable to meet the 5.00 p.m. deadline because of technical 
difficulties in uploading these documents into the DDSR, the party or third party concerned 
shall inform the DS Registry (with a copy to DDSRSupport@wto.org) without delay and 
provide an electronic version of all documen ts to be submitted to the Panel by email 
including any exhibits. The email shall be addressed to DSRegistry@wto.org , the Panel 
Secretary, the other party and, if appropriate, the third parties. The documents sent b y 
email shall be submitted no later than 5 .30 p.m. on the due date established by the Panel, 
together with the DDSR E -docket template. If the file size of specific exhibits makes 
transmission by email impossible, or it would require more than five email me ssages, 
owing to the number of exhibits to be filed, to transmit all of them by email, the specific 
large file size exhibits, or those that cannot be attached to the first five email messages, 
shall be filed with the DS Registry (office No. 2047) and provi ded to the other party and, 
if appropriate, the third parties by no later than 9 .30 a.m. the next working day on a CD -
ROM, DVD, or USB stick, together with the DDSR E -docket template. In that case, the 
party or third party concerned shall send a notificati on to the DS Registrar (with a copy to 
DDSRSupport@wto.org), copying the Panel Secretary, the other party, and the third 
parties, as appropriate, via email, identifying the numbers of the exhibits that cannot be 
transmitted by email.  
f. In case any party or t hird party is unable to access a document filed through the DDSR 
because of technical difficulties, it shall promptly, and in any case no later than 5 .00 p.m. 
on the next working day after the due date for the filing of the document, inform the DS 
Registra r (with a copy to DDSRSupport@wto.org), the Panel Secretary, and the party or 
third party that filed the document, of the problem by email and shall, if possible, identify 
the relevant document(s). The DS Registrar will promptly try to identify a solution to the 
technical problem. In the meantime, the party or third party that filed the document(s) 
shall, promptly after being informed of the problem, provide an electronic version of the 
relevant document(s) to the affected party or third party by email, wit h a copy to the DS 
Registry ( DSRegistry@wto.org ) and the Panel Secretary to allow access to the 
document(s) while the technical problem is being addressed. The DS Registrar may 
provide an electronic version of the relevant document(s) by email if the affected party or 
third party so requests. The DS Registrar shall in that case copy the party or third party 
that filed the document(s) on the email message.  
Correction of clerical errors in submissions  
34. The Panel m ay grant leave to a party or third party to correct clerical errors in any of its 
submissions (including paragraph numbering and typographical mistakes). Any such request should 
identify the nature of the errors to be corrected and should be made promptly following the filing of 
the submission in question.  
 
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