Australia has requested WTO consultations with Canada regarding measures maintained by the Canadian government and the Canadian provinces of British Columbia, Ontario, Quebec and Nova Scotia concerning the sale of wine. The request was circulated to WTO members on 16 January.
Australia claims that a range of distribution, licensing and sales measures such as product mark-ups, market access and listing policies, as well as duties and taxes on wine applied at the federal and provincial level, appear to discriminate against imported wine, in violation of the WTO’s General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) 1994.
Further information is available in document WT/DS537/1
What is a request for consultations?
The request for consultations formally initiates a dispute in the WTO. Consultations give the parties an opportunity to discuss the matter and to find a satisfactory solution without proceeding further with litigation. After 60 days, if consultations have failed to resolve the dispute, the complainant may request adjudication by a panel.
Source:wto.org