Dispute settlement in the WTO

Okay kiddo, imagine you and your friend have a cool toy that you both love playing with. But one day, your friend decides they don't want to share it with you anymore and tries to take it away. You start to argue and don't know what to do to solve the problem.

The World Trade Organization (WTO) is kind of like a big group of grown-ups that helps countries solve their problems when they're arguing about trade. When countries are having a trade dispute, they can ask the WTO to help them figure out a solution.

There are three main steps to the dispute settlement process in the WTO. First, the countries talk to each other and try to solve the problem on their own. If that doesn't work, they can ask a group of experts called a panel to look at the problem and make a decision. Finally, if the losing country still doesn't agree with the decision, the WTO can let the winning country take action to fix the problem, like adding extra taxes on certain goods.

Just like how mommy and daddy might help you and your friend compromise and share the toy, the WTO tries to help countries come to an agreement so they can keep trading with each other without any problems.