Public Morals
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Description
The concept of ‘public morals’ has been defined as ‘standards of right and wrong conduct maintained by or on behalf of a community or nation’. Its content can differ from state to state, depending on factors such as prevailing social, cultural, ethical and religious values. A related concept, ‘public order’, refers to ‘the preservation of the fundamental interests of a society, as reflected in public policy and law’. Either expression demands that governments are granted the right to adapt these terms according to their own value systems. In international economic law, ‘public morals’ is an expression that occurs in the General Exceptions provisions of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) (Article XX) and the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) (Article XIV), where it denotes one of the purposes or grounds on the basis of which the World Trade Organization (WTO) may maintain, consistent with the overall framework of the Article in question, measures that would otherwise be inconsistent with its obligations under the GATT or GATS. The meaning of public morals in these provisions is summarized by Van den Bossche in his contribution to this Encyclopedia. The jurisprudence to date indicates a number of issues that may arise in determining whether a Member’s measures are justified as a protection of public morals that do not arise when relying on other policy goals.
Source Publication
Elgar Encyclopedia of International Economic Law
Source Editors/Authors
Thomas Cottier, Krista Nadakavukaren Schefer
Publication Date
2017
Recommended Citation
Howse, Robert L., "Public Morals" (2017). Faculty Chapters. 838.
https://gretchen.law.nyu.edu/fac-chapt/838
