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| Chile-United States > Chapters 16 - 23 |
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Competition Policy, Designated Monopolies, and State Enterprises Article 16.1: Anticompetitive Business Conduct 1. Each Party shall adopt or maintain competition laws that proscribe anticompetitive business conduct, with the objective of promoting economic efficiency and consumer welfare, and shall take appropriate action with respect to such conduct. 2. Each Party shall maintain an authority responsible for the enforcement of its national competition laws. The enforcement policy of each Party’s national competition authorities is not to discriminate on the basis of the nationality of the subjects of their proceedings. Each Party shall ensure that:
3. Nothing in this Chapter shall be construed to infringe each Party’s autonomy in developing its competition policies or in deciding how to enforce its competition laws. Article 16.2: Cooperation The Parties agree to cooperate in the area of competition policy. The Parties recognize the importance of cooperation and coordination between their respective authorities to further effective competition law enforcement in the free trade area. Accordingly, the Parties shall cooperate on issues of competition law enforcement, including notification, consultation, and exchange of information relating to the enforcement of the Parties’ competition laws and policies. Article 16.3: Designated Monopolies 1. Nothing in this Chapter shall be construed to prevent a Party from designating a monopoly. 2. Where a Party designates a monopoly and the designation may affect the interests of persons of the other Party, the Party shall:
3. Each Party shall ensure that any privately-owned monopoly that it designates after the date of entry into force of this Agreement and any government monopoly that it designates or has designated:
4. This Article does not apply to procurement.
1. Nothing in this Agreement shall be construed to prevent a Party from establishing or maintaining a state enterprise. 2. Each Party shall ensure that any state enterprise that it establishes or maintains acts in a manner that is not inconsistent with the Party’s obligations under this Agreement wherever such enterprise exercises any regulatory, administrative, or other governmental authority that the Party has delegated to it, such as the power to expropriate, grant licenses, approve commercial transactions, or impose quotas, fees, or other charges. 3. Each Party shall ensure that any state enterprise that it establishes or maintains accords non-discriminatory treatment in the sale of its goods or services to covered investments. Article 16.5: Differences in Pricing The charging of different prices in different markets, or within the same market, where such differences are based on normal commercial considerations, such as taking account of supply and demand conditions, is not in itself inconsistent with Articles 16.3 and 16.4. Article 16.6: Transparency and Information Requests 1. The Parties recognize the value of transparency of government competition policies. 2. On request, each Party shall make available to the other Party public information concerning its:
Requests under subparagraph (b) shall indicate the entities or localities involved, specify the particular products and markets concerned, and include indicia of practices that may restrict trade or investment between the Parties. 3. On request, each Party shall make available to the other Party public information concerning exemptions provided under its competition laws. Requests shall specify the particular goods and markets of interest and include indicia that the exemption may restrict trade or investment between the Parties. Article 16.7: Consultations To foster understanding between the Parties, or to address specific matters that arise under this Chapter, each Party shall, on request of the other Party, enter into consultations regarding representations made by the other Party. In its request, the Party shall indicate, if relevant, how the matter affects trade or investment between the Parties. The Party addressed shall accord full and sympathetic consideration to the concerns of the other Party. Article 16.8: Disputes Neither Party may have recourse to dispute settlement under this Agreement for any matter arising under Article 16.1, 16.2, or 16.7. Article 16.9: Definitions For purposes of this Chapter: a delegation includes a legislative grant, and a government order, directive, or other act, transferring to the monopoly or state enterprise, or authorizing the exercise by the monopoly or state enterprise of, governmental authority; designate means to establish, designate, or authorize, formally or in effect, a monopoly or to expand the scope of a monopoly to cover an additional good or service; government monopoly means a monopoly that is owned, or controlled through ownership interests, by the national government of a Party or by another such monopoly; in accordance with commercial considerations means consistent with normal business practices of privately-held enterprises in the relevant business or industry; market means the geographic and commercial market for a good or service; monopoly means an entity, including a consortium or government agency, that in any relevant market in the territory of a Party is designated as the sole provider or purchaser of a good or service, but does not include an entity that has been granted an exclusive intellectual property right solely by reason of such grant; and non-discriminatory treatment means the better of national treatment and most-favored nation treatment, as set out in the relevant provisions of this Agreement. Intellectual Property Rights The Parties, Desiring to reduce distortions and impediments to trade between the Parties; Desiring to enhance the intellectual property systems of the two Parties to account for the latest technological developments and to ensure that measures and procedures to enforce intellectual property rights do not themselves become barriers to legitimate trade; Desiring to promote greater efficiency and transparency in the administration of intellectual property systems of the Parties; Desiring to build on the foundations established in existing international agreements in the field of intellectual property, including the World Trade Organization (WTO) Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS Agreement) and affirming the rights and obligations set forth in the TRIPS Agreement; Recognizing the principles set out in the Declaration on the TRIPS Agreement on Public Health, adopted on November 14, 2001, by the WTO at the Fourth WTO Ministerial Conference, held in Doha, Qatar; Emphasizing that the protection and enforcement of intellectual property rights is a fundamental principle of this Chapter that helps promote technological innovation as well as the transfer and dissemination of technology to the mutual advantage of technology producers and users, and that encourages the development of social and economic well-being; Convinced of the importance of efforts to encourage private and public investment for research, development, and innovation; Recognizing that the business community of each Party should be encouraged to participate in programs and initiatives for research, development, innovation, and the transfer of technology implemented by the other Party; Recognizing the need to achieve a balance between the rights of right holders and the legitimate interests of users and the community with regard to protected works; Agree as follows:
Article 17.1: General Provisions 1. Each Party shall give effect to the provisions of this Chapter and may, but shall not be obliged to, implement in its domestic law more extensive protection than is required by this Chapter, provided that such protection does not contravene the provisions of this Chapter. 2. Before January 1, 2007, each Party shall ratify or accede to the Patent Cooperation Treaty (1984). 3. Before January 1, 2009, each Party shall ratify or accede to:
4. Each Party shall undertake reasonable efforts to ratify or accede to the following agreements in a manner consistent with its domestic law:
5. Nothing in this Chapter concerning intellectual property rights shall derogate from the obligations and rights of one Party with respect to the other by virtue of the TRIPS Agreement or multilateral intellectual property agreements concluded or administered under the auspices of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). 6. In respect of all categories of intellectual property covered in this Chapter, each Party shall accord to persons of the other Party treatment no less favorable than it accords to its own persons with regard to the protection1 and enjoyment of such intellectual property rights and any benefits derived from such rights. With respect to secondary uses of phonograms by means of analog communications and free over-the-air radio broadcasting, however, a Party may limit the rights of the performers and producers of the other Party to the rights its persons are accorded within the jurisdiction of the other Party. 7. Each Party may derogate from paragraph 6 in relation to its judicial and administrative procedures, including the designation of an address for service or the appointment of an agent within the jurisdiction of that Party, only where such derogations are necessary to secure compliance with laws and regulations that are not inconsistent with the provisions of this Chapter and where such practices are not applied in a manner that would constitute a disguised restriction on trade. 8. Paragraphs 6 and 7 do not apply to procedures provided in multilateral agreements concluded under the auspices of WIPO relating to the acquisition or maintenance of intellectual property rights. 9. This Chapter does not give rise to obligations in respect of acts that occurred before the date of entry into force of this Agreement. 10. Except as otherwise provided for in this Chapter, this Chapter gives rise to obligations in respect of all subject matter existing at the date of entry into force of this Agreement, and which is protected by a Party on that date, or which meets or comes subsequently to meet the criteria for protection under the terms of this Chapter. In respect of paragraphs 10 and 11, copyright and related rights obligations with respect to existing works and phonograms shall be determined solely under Article 17.7(7). 11. Neither Party shall be obligated to restore protection to subject matter which on the date of entry into force of this Chapter has fallen into the public domain in that Party. 12. Each Party shall ensure that all laws, regulations, and procedures concerning the protection or enforcement of intellectual property rights, and all final judicial decisions and administrative rulings of general applicability pertaining to the enforcement of such rights, shall be in writing and shall be published,2 or where such publication is not practicable, made publicly available, in a national language in such a manner as to enable the other Party and right holders to become acquainted with them, with the object of making the protection and enforcement of intellectual property rights transparent. Nothing in this paragraph shall require a Party to disclose confidential information the disclosure of which would impede law enforcement or otherwise be contrary to the public interest or would prejudice the legitimate commercial interests of particular enterprises, public or private. 13. Nothing in this Chapter prevents a Party from adopting measures necessary to prevent anticompetitive practices that may result from the abuse of the intellectual property rights set forth in this Chapter. 14. For the purposes of strengthening the development and protection of intellectual property, and implementing the obligations of this Chapter, the Parties will cooperate, on mutually agreed terms and subject to the availability of appropriated funds, by means of:
Article 17.2: Trademarks 1. Each Party shall provide that trademarks shall include collective, certification, and sound marks, and may include geographical indications3 and scent marks. Neither Party is obligated to treat certification marks as a separate category in its domestic law, provided that the signs as such are protected. 2. Each Party shall afford an opportunity for interested parties to oppose the application for a trademark. 3. Pursuant to Article 20 of the TRIPS Agreement, each Party shall ensure that any measures mandating the use of the term customary in common language as the common name for a good (“common name”) including, inter alia, requirements concerning the relative size, placement, or style of use of the trademark in relation to the common name, do not impair the use or effectiveness of trademarks used in relation to such good. 4. Each Party shall provide that the owner of a registered trademark shall have the exclusive right to prevent third parties not having the owner’s consent from using in the course of trade identical or similar signs, including subsequent geographical indications, for goods or services that are related to those goods or services in respect of which the trademark is registered, where such use would result in a likelihood of confusion.4 5. Each Party may provide limited exceptions to the rights conferred by a trademark, such as fair use of descriptive terms, provided that such exceptions take account of the legitimate interests of the owner of the trademark and of third parties. 6. Article 6bis of the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property (1967) (Paris Convention) shall apply, mutatis mutandis, to goods or services which are not similar to those identified by a well-known trademark, whether registered or not, provided that use of that trademark in relation to those goods or services would indicate a connection between those goods or services and the owner of the trademark and provided that the interests of the owner of the trademark are likely to be damaged by such use. 7. Each Party shall, according to its domestic law, provide for appropriate measures to prohibit or cancel the registration of a trademark identical or similar to a well-known trademark, if the use of that trademark by the registration applicant is likely to cause confusion, or to cause mistake, or to deceive or risk associating the trademark with the owner of the well-known trademark, or constitutes unfair exploitation of the reputation of the trademark. Such measures to prohibit or cancel registration shall not apply when the registration applicant is the owner of the well-known trademark. 8. In determining whether a trademark is well-known, a Party shall not require that the reputation of the trademark extend beyond the sector of the public that normally deals with the relevant goods or services. 9. Each Party recognizes the importance of the Joint Recommendation Concerning Provisions on the Protection of Well-Known Marks (1999), adopted by the Assembly of the Paris Union for the Protection of Industrial Property and the General Assembly of WIPO and shall be guided by the principles contained in this Recommendation. 10. Each Party shall provide a system for the registration of trademarks, which shall include:
11. Each Party shall work to provide, to the maximum degree practical, a system for the electronic application, processing, registration, and maintenance of trademarks. 12. In relation to trademarks, Parties are encouraged to classify goods and services according to the classification of the Nice Agreement Concerning the International Classification of Goods and Services for the Purposes of the Registration of Marks (1979). In addition, each Party shall provide that:
Article 17.3: Domain Names on the Internet 1. Each Party shall require that the management of its country-code top level domain (ccTLD) provide an appropriate procedure for the settlement of disputes, based on the principles established in the Uniform Domain-Name Dispute-Resolution Policy (UDRP), in order to address the problem of trademark cyber-piracy. 2. Each Party shall, in addition, require that the management of its respective ccTLD provide online public access to a reliable and accurate database of contact information for domain-name registrants, in accordance with each Party’s law regarding protection of personal data. Article 17.4: Geographical Indications 5 1. Geographical indications, for the purposes of this Article, are indications which identify a good as originating in the territory of a Party, or a region or locality in that territory, where a given quality, reputation, or other characteristic of the good is essentially attributable to its geographical origin. Any sign or combination of signs (such as words, including geographical and personal names, letters, numerals, figurative elements, and colors), in any form whatsoever, shall be eligible for protection or recognition as a geographical indication. 2. Chile shall:
3. The United States shall:
4. Each Party shall provide the means for persons of the other Party to apply for protection or petition for recognition of geographical indications. Each Party shall accept applications or petitions, as the case may be, without the requirement for intercession by a Party on behalf of its persons. 5. Each Party shall process applications or petitions, as the case may be, for geographical indications with a minimum of formalities. 6. Each Party shall make the regulations governing filing of such applications or petitions, as the case may be, available to the public in both printed and electronic form. 7. Each Party shall ensure that applications or petitions, as the case may be, for geographical indications are published for opposition, and shall provide procedures to effect opposition of geographical indications that are the subject of applications or petitions. Each Party shall also provide procedures to cancel any registration resulting from an application or a petition. 8. Each Party shall ensure that measures governing the filing of applications or petitions, as the case may be, for geographical indications set out clearly the procedures for these actions. Such procedures shall include contact information sufficient for applicants or petitioners to obtain specific procedural guidance regarding the processing of applications or petitions. 9. The Parties acknowledge the principle of exclusivity incorporated in the Paris Convention and TRIPS Agreement, with respect to rights in trademarks. 10. After the date of entry into force of this Agreement, each Party shall ensure that grounds for refusing protection or registration of a geographical indication include the following:
11. Within six months of the entry into force of this Agreement, each Party shall communicate to the public the means by which it intends to implement paragraphs 2 through 10. 1. Each Party shall provide that authors7 of literary and artistic works have the right8 to authorize or prohibit all reproductions of their works, in any manner or form, permanent or temporary (including temporary storage in electronic form). 2. Without prejudice to the provisions of Articles 11(1)(ii), 11bis(1)(i) and (ii), 11ter(1)(ii), 14(1)(ii), and 14bis(1) of the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works (1971) (Berne Convention), each Party shall provide to authors of literary and artistic works the right to authorize or prohibit the communication to the public of their works, by wire or wireless means, including the making available to the public of their works in such a way that members of the public may access these works from a place and at a time individually chosen by them.9 3. Each Party shall provide to authors of literary and artistic works the right to authorize the making available to the public of the original and copies10 of their works through sale or other transfer of ownership. 4. Each Party shall provide that where the term of protection of a work (including a photographic work) is calculated:
Article 17.6: Related Rights11 1. Each Party shall provide that performers and producers of phonograms12 have the right to authorize or prohibit all reproductions of their performances or phonograms, in any manner or form, permanent or temporary (including temporary storage in electronic form). 2. Each Party shall provide to performers and producers of phonograms the right to authorize the making available to the public of the original and copies13 of their performances or phonograms through sale or other transfer of ownership. 3. Each Party shall accord the rights provided under this Chapter to the performers and producers of phonograms who are persons of the other Party and to performances or phonograms first published or first fixed in a Party. A performance or phonogram shall be considered first published in any Party in which it is published within 30 days of its original publication.14 4. Each Party shall provide to performers the right to authorize or prohibit:
5.
6. Neither Party shall subject the enjoyment and exercise of the rights of performers and producers of phonograms provided for in this Chapter to any formality. 7. Each Party shall provide that where the term of protection of a performance or phonogram is to be calculated on a basis other than the life of a natural person, the term shall be:
8. For the purposes of Articles 17.6 and 17.7, the following definitions apply with respect to performers and producers of phonograms:
Article 17.7: Obligations Common to Copyright and Related Rights16 1. Each Party shall establish that in cases where authorization is needed from both the author of a work embodied in a phonogram and a performer or producer owning rights in the phonogram, the need for the authorization of the author does not cease to exist because the authorization of the performer and producer is also required. Likewise, each Party shall establish that in cases where authorization is needed from both the author of a work embodied in a phonogram and a performer or producer owning rights in the phonogram, the need for the authorization of the performer or producer does not cease to exist because the authorization of the author is also required. 2.
3. Each Party shall confine limitations or exceptions to rights to certain special cases which do not conflict with a normal exploitation of the work, performance, or phonogram, and do not unreasonably prejudice the legitimate interests of the right holder.17 4. In order to confirm that all federal or central government agencies use computer software only as authorized, each Party shall issue appropriate laws, orders, regulations, or administrative or executive decrees to actively regulate the acquisition and management of software for such government use. Such measures may take the form of procedures such as preparing and maintaining inventories of software present on agencies’ computers and inventories of software licenses. 5. In order to provide adequate legal protection and effective legal remedies against the circumvention of effective technological measures that are used by authors, performers, and producers of phonograms in connection with the exercise of their rights and that restrict unauthorized acts in respect of their works, performances, and phonograms, protected by copyright and related rights:
6. In order to provide adequate and effective legal remedies to protect rights management information:
7. Each Party shall apply Article 18 of the Berne Convention, mutatis mutandis, to all the protections of copyright and related rights and effective technological measures and rights management information in Articles 17.5, 17.6, and 17.7. Article 17.8: Protection of Encrypted Program-Carrying Satellite Signals 1. Each Party shall make it:
2. Each Party shall provide that any person injured by any activity described in subparagraphs 1(a) or 1(b), including any person that holds an interest in the encrypted programming signal or the content of that signal, shall be permitted to initiate a civil action under any measure implementing such subparagraphs. Article 17.9: Patents 1. Each Party shall make patents available for any invention, whether a product or a process, in all fields of technology, provided that the invention is new, involves an inventive step, and is capable of industrial application. For purposes of this Article, a Party may treat the terms “inventive step” and “capable of industrial application” as being synonymous with the terms “non-obvious” and “useful”, respectively. 2. Each Party will undertake reasonable efforts, through a transparent and participatory process, to develop and propose legislation within 4 years from the entry into force of this Agreement that makes available patent protection for plants that are new, involve an inventive step, and are capable of industrial application. 3. Each Party may provide limited exceptions to the exclusive rights conferred by a patent, provided that such exceptions do not unreasonably conflict with a normal exploitation of the patent and do not unreasonably prejudice the legitimate interests of the patent owner, taking account of the legitimate interests of third parties. 4. If a Party permits the use by a third party of the subject matter of a subsisting patent to support an application for marketing approval or sanitary permit of a pharmaceutical product, the Party shall provide that any product produced under such authority shall not be made, used, or sold in the territory of the Party other than for purposes related to meeting requirements for marketing approval or the sanitary permit, and if export is permitted, the product shall only be exported outside the territory of the Party for purposes of meeting requirements for issuing marketing approval or sanitary permits in the exporting Party. 5. A Party may revoke or cancel a patent only when grounds exist that would have justified a refusal to grant the patent.24 6. Each Party shall provide for the adjustment of the term of a patent, at the request of the patent owner, to compensate for unreasonable delays that occur in granting the patent. For the purposes of this paragraph, an unreasonable delay shall be understood to include a delay in the issuance of the patent of more than five years from the date of filing of the application in the Party, or three years after a request for examination of the application has been made, whichever is later, provided that periods of time attributable to actions of the patent applicant need not be included in the determination of such delays. 7. Neither Party shall use a public disclosure to bar patentability based upon a lack of novelty or inventive step if the public disclosure (a) was made or authorized by, or derived from, the patent applicant and (b) occurs within 12 months prior to the date of filing of the application in the Party. Article 17.10: Measures Related to Certain Regulated Products 1. If a Party requires the submission of undisclosed information concerning the safety and efficacy of a pharmaceutical or agricultural chemical product which utilizes a new chemical entity, which product has not been previously approved, to grant a marketing approval or sanitary permit for such product, the Party shall not permit third parties not having the consent of the person providing the information to market a product based on this new chemical entity, on the basis of the approval granted to the party submitting such information. A Party shall maintain this prohibition for a period of at least five years from the date of approval for a pharmaceutical product and ten years from the date of approval for an agricultural chemical product.25 Each Party shall protect such information against disclosure except where necessary to protect the public. 2. With respect to pharmaceutical products that are subject to a patent, each Party shall:
Article 17.11: Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights General Obligations 1. Each Party shall ensure that procedures and remedies set forth in this Article for enforcement of intellectual property rights are established in accordance with its domestic law.26 Such administrative and judicial procedures and remedies, both civil and criminal, shall be made available to the holders of such rights in accordance with the principles of due process that each Party recognizes as well as with the foundations of its own legal system. 2. This Article does not create any obligation:
The distribution of resources for the enforcement of intellectual property rights shall not excuse a Party from compliance with the provisions of this Article. 3. Final decisions on the merits of a case of general application shall be in writing and shall state the reasons or the legal basis upon which decisions are based. 4. Each Party shall publicize or make available to the public information that each Party might collect regarding its efforts to provide effective enforcement of intellectual property rights, including statistical information. 5. Each Party shall make available the civil remedies set forth in this Article for the acts described in the Articles 17.7(5) and 17.7(6). 6. In civil, administrative, and criminal proceedings involving copyright or related rights, each Party shall provide that:
Civil and Administrative Procedures28 and Remedies 7. Each Party shall make available to right holders29 civil judicial procedures concerning the enforcement of any intellectual property right. 8. Each Party shall provide that:
9. In civil judicial proceedings, each Party shall, at least with respect to works protected by copyright or related rights and trademark counterfeiting, establish pre-established damages, prescribed by each Party’s domestic law, that the judicial authorities deem reasonable in light of the goals of the intellectual property system and the objectives set forth in this Chapter. 10. Each Party shall provide that, except in exceptional circumstances, its judicial authorities have the authority to order, at the conclusion of civil judicial proceedings concerning infringement of copyright or related rights and trademark counterfeiting, that the prevailing right holder shall be paid the court costs or fees and reasonable attorney’s fees by the infringing party. 11. In civil judicial proceedings concerning copyright and related rights infringement and trademark counterfeiting, each Party shall provide that its judicial authorities shall have the authority to order the seizure of suspected infringing goods, and of material and implements by means of which such goods are produced where necessary to prevent further infringement. 12. In civil judicial proceedings, each Party shall provide that:
13. In civil judicial proceedings, each Party shall provide that the judicial authorities shall have the authority to order the infringer to provide any information the infringer may have regarding persons involved in the infringement, and regarding the distribution channels of infringing goods. Judicial authorities shall also have the authority to impose fines or imprisonment on infringers who do not comply with such orders, in accordance with each Party’s domestic law. 14. To the extent that any civil remedy can be ordered as a result of administrative procedures on the merits of a case, such procedures shall conform to principles equivalent in substance to those set forth in paragraphs 1 through 13. Provisional Measures 15. Each Party shall provide that requests for relief inaudita altera parte shall be acted upon expeditiously in accordance with the judicial procedural rules of that Party. 16. Each Party shall provide that:
17. Each Party shall provide that any right holder initiating procedures for suspension by the customs authorities of the release of suspected counterfeit trademark or pirated copyright goods31 into free circulation is required to provide adequate evidence to satisfy the competent authorities that, under the laws of the Party of importation, there is prima facie an infringement of the right holder’s intellectual property right and to supply sufficient information to make the suspected goods reasonably recognizable to the customs authorities. The sufficient information required shall not unreasonably deter recourse to these procedures. 18. Each Party shall provide the competent authorities with the authority to require an applicant to provide a reasonable security or equivalent assurance sufficient to protect the defendant and the competent authorities and to prevent abuse. Such security or equivalent assurance shall not unreasonably deter recourse to these procedures. 19. Where the competent authorities have made a determination that goods are counterfeit or pirated, a Party shall grant the competent authorities the authority to inform the right holder, at the right holder’s request, of the names and addresses of the consignor, the importer, and the consignee, and of the quantity of the goods in question. 20. Each Party shall provide that the competent authorities are permitted to initiate border measures ex officio, without the need for a formal complaint from a person or right holder. Such measures shall be used when there is reason to believe or suspect that goods being imported, destined for export, or moving in transit are counterfeit or pirated. In case of goods in transit, each Party, in conformity with other international agreements subscribed to by it, may provide that ex officio authority shall be exercised prior to sealing the container, or other means of conveyance, with the customs seal, as applicable.32 21. Each Party shall provide that:
Criminal Procedures and Remedies 22. Each Party shall provide for application of criminal procedures and penalties at least in cases of willful trademark counterfeiting or piracy, on a commercial scale, of works, performances, or phonograms protected by copyright or related rights. Specifically, each Party shall ensure that:
Limitations on Liability for Internet Service Providers 23.
Article 17.12: Final Provisions 1. Except as otherwise provided in this Chapter, each Party shall give effect to the provisions of this Chapter upon the date of entry into force of this Agreement. 2. In those cases in which the full implementation of the obligations contained in this Chapter requires a Party to amend its domestic legislation or additional financial resources, those amendments and financial resources shall be in force or available as soon as practicable, and in no event later than:
Labor Article 18.1: Statement of Shared Commitment 1. The Parties reaffirm their obligations as members of the International Labor Organization (ILO) and their commitments under the ILO Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work and its Follow-up (1998). Each Party shall strive to ensure that such labor principles and the internationally recognized labor rights set forth in Article 18.8 are recognized and protected by its domestic law. 2. Recognizing the right of each Party to establish its own domestic labor standards, and to adopt or modify accordingly its labor laws, each Party shall strive to ensure that its laws provide for labor standards consistent with the internationally recognized labor rights set forth in Article 18.8 and shall strive to improve those standards in that light. Article 18.2: Enforcement of Labor Laws 1.
2. The Parties recognize that it is inappropriate to encourage trade or investment by weakening or reducing the protections afforded in domestic labor laws. Accordingly, each Party shall strive to ensure that it does not waive or otherwise derogate from, or offer to waive or otherwise derogate from, such laws in a manner that weakens or reduces adherence to the internationally recognized labor rights referred to in Article 18.8 as an encouragement for trade with the other Party, or as an encouragement for the establishment, acquisition, expansion, or retention of an investment in its territory. 3. Nothing in this Chapter shall be construed to empower a Party’s authorities to undertake labor law enforcement activities in the territory of the other Party. Article 18.3: Procedural Guarantees and Public Awareness 1. Each Party shall ensure that persons with a legally recognized interest under its law in a particular matter have appropriate access to judicial tribunals of general, labor or other specific jurisdiction, quasi-judicial tribunals, or administrative tribunals, as appropriate, for the enforcement of the Party’s labor laws. 2. Each Party shall ensure that its proceedings for the enforcement of its labor laws are fair, equitable, and transparent. 3. Each Party shall provide that the parties to such proceedings may seek remedies to ensure the enforcement of their rights under domestic labor laws. 4. For greater certainty, decisions by each Party’s judicial tribunals of general, labor, or other specific jurisdiction, quasi-judicial tribunals, or administrative tribunals, as appropriate, or pending decisions, as well as related proceedings, shall not be subject to revision or reopened under the provisions of this Chapter. 5. Each Party shall promote public awareness of its labor laws. Article 18.4: Labor Affairs Council 1. The Parties hereby establish a Labor Affairs Council, comprising cabinet-level or equivalent representatives of the Parties, or their designees. 2. The Council shall meet within the first year after the date of entry into force of this Agreement and thereafter as often as it considers necessary to oversee the implementation of and review progress under this Chapter, including the activities of the Labor Cooperation Mechanism established under Article 18.5, and to pursue the labor objectives of this Agreement. Each meeting of the Council shall include a public session, unless the Parties otherwise agree. 3. Each Party shall designate an office within its labor ministry that shall serve as a point of contact with the other Party, and with the public, for purposes of carrying out the work of the Council. 4. The Council shall establish its work program and procedures and may, in carrying out its work, establish governmental working or expert groups and consult with or seek advice of non-governmental organizations or persons, including independent experts. 5. All decisions of the Council shall be taken by mutual agreement of the Parties and shall be made public, unless the Council decides otherwise. 6. Each Party may convene a national consultative or advisory committee, as appropriate, comprising members of its public, including representatives of its labor and business organizations and other persons to provide views regarding the implementation of this Chapter. 7. Each Party’s point of contact shall provide for the submission, receipt, and consideration of public communications on matters related to this Chapter, and shall make such communications available to the other Party and the public. Each Party shall review such communications, as appropriate, in accordance with its domestic procedures. Article 18.5: Labor Cooperation Mechanism Recognizing that cooperation provides enhanced opportunities for the Parties to promote respect for the principles embodied in the ILO Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work and its Follow-up (1998), compliance with ILO Convention 182 Concerning the Prohibition and Immediate Action for the Elimination of the Worst Forms of Child Labor (1999), and to advance other common commitments, the Parties hereby establish a Labor Cooperation Mechanism, as set out in Annex 18.5. Article 18.6: Cooperative Consultations 1. A Party may request consultations with the other Party regarding any matter arising under this Chapter by delivering a written request to the point of contact that the other Party has designated under Article 18.4(3). 2. The Parties shall consult promptly after delivery of the request. The requesting Party shall provide specific and sufficient information in the request for the other Party to respond. 3. The Parties shall make every attempt to arrive at a mutually satisfactory resolution of the matter and may seek advice or assistance from any person or body they deem appropriate in order to fully examine the matter at issue. 4. If the Parties fail to resolve a matter through consultations, either Party may request that the Council be convened to consider the matter by delivering a written request to the other Party’s point of contact. 5. The Council shall promptly convene and shall endeavor to resolve the matter, including, where appropriate, by consulting outside experts and having recourse to such procedures as good offices, conciliation, or mediation. 6. If the matter concerns whether a Party is conforming to its obligations under Article 18.2(1)(a), and the Parties have failed to resolve the matter within 60 days of a request under paragraph 1, the complaining Party may request consultations under Article 22.4 (Consultations) or a meeting of the Commission under Article 22.5 (Commission – Good Offices, Conciliation, and Mediation) and, as provided in Chapter Twenty-Two (Dispute Settlement), thereafter have recourse to the other provisions of that Chapter. 7. Neither Party may have recourse to dispute settlement under this Agreement for any matter arising under any provision of this Chapter other than Article 18.2(1)(a). 8. Neither Party may have recourse to dispute settlement under this Agreement for a matter arising under Article 18.2(1)(a) without first pursuing resolution of the matter in accordance with this Article. Article 18.7: Labor Roster 1. The Parties shall establish within six months after the date of entry into force of this Agreement and maintain a roster of up to 12 individuals who are willing and able to serve as panelists in disputes arising under Article 18.2(1)(a). Unless the Parties otherwise agree, four members of the roster shall be selected from among individuals who are non-Party nationals. Labor roster members shall be appointed by mutual agreement of the Parties and may be reappointed. Once established, a roster shall remain in effect for a minimum of three years, and shall remain in effect thereafter until the Parties constitute a new roster. 2. Labor roster members shall:
3. Where a Party claims that a dispute arises under Article 18.2(1)(a), Article 22.9 (Panel Selection) shall apply, except that the panel shall be composed entirely of panelists meeting the qualifications in paragraph 2. Article 18.8: Definitions For purposes of this Chapter: labor laws means a Party’s statutes or regulations, or provisions thereof, that are directly related to the following internationally recognized labor rights:
For greater certainty, the setting of standards and levels in respect of minimum wages by each Party shall not be subject to obligations under this Chapter. Each Party’s obligations under this Chapter pertain to enforcing the level of the general minimum wage established by that Party. statutes or regulations means:
Labor Cooperation Mechanism Establishment of a Labor Cooperation Mechanism 1. Recognizing that bilateral cooperation on labor matters will provide enhanced opportunities for the Parties to improve labor standards, and to further advance their common commitments, including the ILO Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work and its Follow-up (1998), the Parties have established a Labor Cooperation Mechanism. Organization and Principal Functions 2. Each Party shall designate an office within its ministry of labor to serve as a point of contact to support the work of the Labor Cooperation Mechanism. 3. The Parties’ labor ministries shall carry out the work of the Labor Cooperation Mechanism by developing and pursuing cooperative activities on labor matters, including by working jointly to:
Cooperative Activities 4. The Labor Cooperation Mechanism may undertake cooperative activities on any labor matter it considers appropriate, such as on:
Implementation of Cooperative Activities 5. The Parties may carry out cooperative activities under this Annex through any form they deem appropriate, including by:
6. In identifying areas for cooperation and carrying out cooperative activities, the Parties shall consider views of their respective worker and employer representatives, as well as other members of civil society. Environment Objectives The objectives of this Chapter are to contribute to the Parties’ efforts to ensure that trade and environmental policies are mutually supportive and to collaboratively promote the optimal use of resources in accordance with the objective of sustainable development; and to strive to strengthen the links between the Parties’ trade and environment policies and practices to further the trade expanding goals of this Agreement, including through promoting non-discriminatory measures, avoiding disguised barriers to trade, and eliminating trade distortions where the result can directly benefit both trade and the environment. Article 19.1: Levels of Protection Recognizing the right of each Party to establish its own levels of domestic environmental protection and environmental development policies and priorities, and to adopt or modify accordingly its environmental laws, each Party shall ensure that its laws provide for high levels of environmental protection and shall strive to continue to improve those laws. Article 19.2: Enforcement of Environmental Laws 1.
2. The Parties recognize that it is inappropriate to encourage trade or investment by weakening or reducing the protections afforded in domestic environmental laws. Accordingly, each Party shall strive to ensure that it does not waive or otherwise derogate from, or offer to waive or otherwise derogate from, such laws in a manner that weakens or reduces the protections afforded in those laws as an encouragement for trade with the other Party, or as an encouragement for the establishment, acquisition, expansion, or retention of an investment in its territory. 3. Nothing in this Chapter shall be construed to empower a Party’s authorities to undertake environmental law enforcement activities in the territory of the other Party. Article 19.3: Environment Affairs Council 1. The Parties hereby establish an Environment Affairs Council comprising cabinet level or equivalent representatives of the Parties, or their designees. The Council shall meet once a year, or more often if the Parties agree, to discuss the implementation of, and progress under, this Chapter. Meetings of the Council shall include a public session, unless the Parties otherwise agree. 2. In order to share innovative approaches for addressing environmental issues of interest to the public, the Council shall ensure a process for promoting public participation in its work, including by seeking advice from the public in developing agendas for Council meetings and by engaging in a dialogue with the public on those issues. 3. The Council shall seek appropriate opportunities for the public to participate in the development and implementation of cooperative environmental activities, including through the United States - Chile Environmental Cooperation Agreement, as set out in Annex 19.3. 4. All decisions of the Council shall be taken by mutual agreement and shall be made public, unless the Council decides otherwise, or as otherwise provided in this Agreement. Article 19.4: Opportunities for Public Participation 1. Each Party shall provide for the receipt and consideration of public communications on matters related to this Chapter. Each Party shall promptly make available to the other Party and to its public all communications it receives and shall review and respond to them in accordance with its domestic procedures. 2. Each Party shall make best efforts to respond favorably to requests for consultations by persons or organizations in its territory regarding the Party’s implementation of this Chapter. 3. Each Party may convene, or consult an existing, national consultative or advisory committee, comprising members of its public, including representatives of business and environmental organizations, and other persons, to advise it on the implementation of this Chapter.
1. The Parties recognize the importance of strengthening capacity to protect the environment and promote sustainable development in concert with strengthening trade and investment relations between them. The Parties agree to undertake cooperative environmental activities, in particular through:
2. Each Party shall take into account public comments and recommendations it receives regarding cooperative environmental activities the Parties undertake pursuant to this Chapter. 3. The Parties shall, as they deem appropriate, share information on their experiences in assessing and taking into account positive or negative environmental effects of trade agreements and policies. Article 19.6: Environmental Consultations 1. A Party may request consultations with the other Party regarding any matter arising under this Chapter by delivering a written request to the other Party. 2. The Parties shall consult promptly after delivery of the request. The requesting Party shall provide specific and sufficient information in the request for the other Party to respond. 3. The Parties shall make every attempt to arrive at a mutually satisfactory resolution of the matter and may seek advice or assistance from any person or body they deem appropriate in order to fully examine the matter at issue. 4. If the Parties fail to resolve the matter through consultations, either Party may request that the Council be convened to consider the matter by delivering a written request to the other Party. 5. The Council shall promptly convene and shall endeavor to resolve the matter, including, where appropriate, by consulting governmental or outside experts and having recourse to such procedures as good offices, conciliation, or mediation. 6. If the matter concerns whether a Party is conforming to its obligations under Article 19.2(1)(a), and the Parties have failed to resolve the matter within 60 days of a request for consultations under paragraph 1, the complaining Party may request consultations under Article 22.4 (Consultations) or a meeting of the Commission under Article 22.5 (Commission - Good Offices, Conciliation, and Mediation) and, as provided in Chapter Twenty-Two (Dispute Settlement), thereafter have recourse to the other provisions of that Chapter. 7. The Council may, where appropriate, provide information to the Commission regarding any consultations held on the matter. 8. Neither Party may have recourse to dispute settlement under this Agreement for any matter arising under any provision of this Chapter other than Article 19.2(1)(a). 9. Neither Party may have recourse to dispute settlement under this Agreement for a matter arising under Article 19.2(1)(a) without first pursuing resolution of the matter in accordance with this Article. 10. In cases where the Parties agree that a matter arising under this Chapter is more properly covered by another agreement to which the Parties are party, they shall refer the matter for appropriate action in accordance with that agreement. Article 19.7: Environment Roster 1. The Parties shall establish within six months after the date of entry into force of this Agreement and maintain a roster of at least 12 individuals who are willing and able to serve as panelists in disputes arising under Article 19.2(1)(a). Unless the Parties otherwise agree, four members of the roster shall be selected from among individuals who are non-Party nationals. Environment roster members shall be appointed by mutual agreement of the Parties, and may be reappointed. Once established, a roster shall remain in effect for a minimum of three years, and shall remain in effect thereafter until the Parties constitute a new roster. 2. Environment roster members shall:
3. Where a Party claims that a dispute arises under Article 19.2(1)(a), Article 22.9 (Panel Selection) shall apply, except that:
Article 19.8: Procedural Matters 1. Each Party shall ensure that judicial, quasi-judicial, or administrative proceedings are available under its law to sanction or remedy violations of its environmental laws.
2. Each Party shall ensure that interested persons may request the Party’s competent authorities to investigate alleged violations of its environmental laws and that the competent authorities give such requests due consideration in accordance with its law. 3. Each Party shall ensure that persons with a legally recognized interest under its law in a particular matter have appropriate access to judicial, quasi-judicial, or administrative proceedings for the enforcement of the Party’s environmental laws. 4. Each Party shall provide persons appropriate and effective rights of access to remedies in accordance with its laws, which may include the right:
Article 19.9: Relationship to Environmental Agreements The Parties recognize the importance of multilateral environmental agreements, including the appropriate use of trade measures in such agreements to achieve specific environmental goals. Recognizing that in paragraph 31(i) of the Ministerial Declaration adopted on November 14, 2001 in Doha, WTO members have agreed to negotiations on the relationship between existing WTO rules and specific trade obligations set out in multilateral environmental agreements, the Parties shall consult on the extent to which the outcome of the negotiations applies to this Agreement. Article 19.10: Principles of Corporate Stewardship Recognizing the substantial benefits brought by international trade and investment as well as the opportunity for enterprises to implement policies for sustainable development that seek to ensure coherence between social, economic and environmental objectives, each Party should encourage enterprises operating within its territory or jurisdiction to voluntarily incorporate sound principles of corporate stewardship in their internal policies, such as those principles or agreements that have been endorsed by both Parties. Article 19.11: Definitions For purposes of this Chapter: environmental law means any statute or regulation of a Party, or provision thereof, the primary purpose of which is the protection of the environment, or the prevention of a danger to human life or health, through:
For greater certainty, environmental law does not include any statute or regulation, or provision thereof, the primary pur | |