As Covid plus a deteriorating global trade regime makes previously unthinkable actions possible, expect more actions to block trade. Some will try for creativity, but others will simply act and dare others to challenge their bad behavior. It is easier to take such actions, of course, at a time when the global trade dispute system is broken. Governments can continue to file claims against one another at the WTO. Absent a fully functioning system though, the “losing” party can simply sit on the verdict (“send it out into the void”) and make no change to any policy. Some bad behavior could, in theory, be constrained by a variety of regional or bilateral trade deals that often come with their own dispute settlement mechanisms. Most of these dispute systems have never been used, though, as governments have tended to trust the WTO system to resolve disputes whenever possible. It’s unclear how well these other mechanisms in the majority of trade agreements might fare in tackling tough disputes. A determined government is never likely to be constrained by the mere presence of a dispute settlement system. The system works only when members are willing to abide by the rules. The global trade problem is not just that the “court” system is not working, but that some of the members in the system don’t even seem interested in participating.