Consistent with its tactic of utilizing third parties to counter tobacco control policies, the tobacco industry is likely to mobilize business organizations in its campaign to challenge FCTC Parties’ efforts to impose plain packaging or increase the size of graphic health warnings.

In the WTO proceedings on the Australia plain packaging law, several business platforms had submitted arguments that echo tobacco industry’s claims against the public health measure, through amicus curiae submissions.

A total of thirty six (36) such submissions were attached as exhibits of complainants Dominican Republic, Honduras, and Indonesia. In WTO dispute settlement history[i], thirty six (36) is a record number of amicus curiae submissions in a WTO dispute. Counting organizations with joint submissions, the submissions involved over forty (40) organizations, hosted in about twenty seven (27) countries. [ii]Note: Submissions by groups of organizations are split up into the constituent organizations if their offices are in different countries. Highlighted in red are the regional or international associations or organizations.