October - December, 2006
The latest installment From Canada
Legislation implementing the Softwood Lumber Agreement was approved by the Canadian parliament on Friday, December 15. "This important event is the last step in implementing the Softwood Lumber Agreement between Canada and the U.S. and marks a tremendous achievement for Canada's New Government," said David Emerson, minister of international trade. To date, more than 98.9% of refunds authorized by the agreement have been processed. - 12/18/2006
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit dismissed a complaint by the Coalition for Fair Lumber Imports claiming that the NAFTA Chapter 19 dispute settlement panel system violates the U.S. Constitution, according to a press release from the Coalition. The court dismissed the case on technical jurisdictional grounds relating to the settlement of the softwood lumber dispute with Canada. "The Coalition remains confident about the validity of its case, and the court did not call into question the merits of our showing that the NAFTA Chapter 19 system is unconstitutional," said Coalition Chairman Steve Swanson.
Sources: Random Lengths