North American Free Trade Agreement
The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) was a trade agreement designed to reduce the boundaries for goods and services across the borders of Canada, the United States and Mexico. While it did not establish a common market in the full sense of the term, NAFTA developed a free trade zone throughout North America. Negotiations for NAFTA began in July of 1991 and the final draft was completed by the summer of 1992. The leaders of the United States, Canada and Mexico signed NAFTA on December 17, 1992. In Mexico, NAFTA became law as an international treaty. In both Canada and the United States, domestic legislation was required in order to implement the treaty. The NAFTA Implementation Act [P.L. 103-182, 107 Stat 2057] passed Congress in December 1993 and was codified primarily into Title 19 of the United States Code [19 U.S.C. 3301 et seq.]. NAFTA officially entered into force on January 1, 1994. In addition to the main treaty, NAFTA included two other agreements relating to environmental and labor issues: the North American Agreement on Environmental Cooperation and the North American Agreement on Labor Cooperation.
The U.S.-Canada Free-Trade Agreement (FTA or CFTA) was a precursor to NAFTA. It was a bilateral trade agreement between the United States and Canada designed to open up the borders between the two countries. The development of the FTA acted as motivation for the development and eventual implementation of NAFTA. FTA went into effect on January 1, 1989, but was suspended following the signing of NAFTA. Were NAFTA to fail or either the U.S. or Canada to withdraw, the FTA would be reinstated.
There are a number of places where one can find the text of the NAFTA agreements, as well as its origins and negotiations. The Diamond Library contains numerous resources relating to NAFTA. Presented below are a selection of the library's resources which provide a good entry point for research in this area.
The NAFTA was superseded by United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement ("USMCA"), which took effect on July 1, 2020.
NAFTA Dispute Resolution
Dispute resolution under NAFTA was governed by Chapter 19 - Review and Dispute Settlement in Antidumping and Countervailing Duty Matters and by Chapter 20 - Institutional Arrangements and Dispute Settlement Procedures. Under Article 1904, judicial review of disputes is replaced with binational panel review. Article 2002 established the Secretariat which has the authority to administer the trade disputes mechanisms specified under the NAFTA to resolve conflicts in timely and impartial manner.
NAFTA Founding Documents
North American Free Trade Agreements (NAFTA) : Hearings before the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, 103d Cong., 1st Sess (e-resource)Publication Date: 1994This loose-leaf contains the full-text of all the NAFTA agreements, as well as other documents relating to NAFTA, such as dispute settlement panel decisions and commentaries. This is a multi-volume set with four volumes for the treaties and currently one or two volumes for commentary and decisions.- NAFTA : final text, summary, legislative history & Implementation directory by Call Number: JX5525 H691 1994Publication Date: 1994The resource contains the full text of NAFTA. It also provides a summary of the intent and functions of the trade agreement. A legislative history of Congress' action in passing the North American Free Trade Agreement Implementation Act is presented in the first section of the book. The legislative history begins with a summary of the passage of the Act and then lists the relevant Congressional hearings, debates and reports, as well as presidential remarks relating to NAFTA. The NAFTA summary section quickly explains the terms of the agreement in sequential order.
NAFTA Resources
To see more background and reference works available at Diamond Law Library, including older editions, please try these searches on Pegasus:
You can find a selected list of publications below.
- NAFTA Free Trade and Foreign Investment in the Americas (e-book) by Publication Date: 2014This Nutshell provides a quick reference for students and practitioners on the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), the Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA), Mercado Comun del Sur (MERCOSUR), and numerous other free trade agreements in the Americas. No lawyer or business operating in the Americas can escape their significance. They represent the future, a blending of national legal and business cultures and traditions. This book addresses the interests not only of North, South and Central Americans, but also persons located outside the region who worry about the externalities of free trade in the Americas. NAFTA treaties are appended.
Also available in print, Call Number KDZ944 .F653 2014 - Navigating NAFTA by Call Number: JX5525 Ap53 1994Publication Date: 1994Written in clear, understandable language, this book serves as an introduction to NAFTA. It begins with an overview of the history and proposes of the trade agreement. There are chapters discussing the implementation process, each country's obligations and how NAFTA interacts with other international agreements. Specific subject areas are analyzed in conjunction with the NAFTA obligations and the dispute resolution policies are explained. The book ends with chapters dealing with frequently raised concerns about NAFTA. The book has a detailed table of contents and table of cases referenced and would serve as a good starting point for research into NAFTA.
- Assessing NAFTA by Call Number: JX5525 As74 1993Publication Date: 1993Completed during NAFTA negotiations (prior to the implementation of the agreement), this book provides an interesting historical analysis of what were considered to be issues, problems and concerns relating to NAFTA. This is a collection of studies by different authors which explore the topic in different contexts. There are chapters relating to how NAFTA would impact each of the countries involved, as well as a chapter on NAFTA's impact in general. Specific affected trade areas are discussed, such as the automotive industry and agriculture. There are also chapters discussing the dispute resolution issues and environmental concerns. Since this material is from before NAFTA's enactment, it is not current and should only be considered within a historical, analytical context.
- NAFTA on WestlawThe NAFTA database provides access to the full text of the North American Free Trade Agreement. It also had associated summaries, news releases, and text describing NAFTA. Coverage begins with August 1992 when the final agreement was reached. The NAFTA-LH database contains a comprehensive legislative history of the North American Free Trade Agreement Implementation Act (P.L. 103-182). Full text of decisions issued by the North American Free Trade Agreement Binational Panel (formerly the U.S.-Canada Free Trade Agreement Binational Panel) dating from 1989 are presented in the NAFTA-BIP database. Information about NAFTA is also presented in other databases, such as International Business Transactions (INTBUSTRAN). A useful aspect of WESTLAW is the scan function within the Directory that allows one to find all the databases where information on NAFTA will be found.