Global Health Governance, Trade Governance and the Regime of the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control

Abstract

This paper analyzes the tussle between global health governance and trade governance regarding tobacco control and the role of the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC). We explore the FCTC regime: its genesis, politics, and polemics on trade and health governance and examine legal proceedings initiated by transnational tobacco companies in courts of law and arbitral tribunals challenging the implementation of FCTC-compliant tobacco control measures. We conclude by distilling the lessons learned from the analysis of the politics of trade v. health debate in global tobacco control, investigating pertinent legal documents as well as scrutinizing related legal cases.