The ‘public morals’ exception remains a key aspect of the international trade system; however, its outer bounds have never been precisely defined. This question became pertinent in the US–Tariff Measures panel report, which expansively read the exception to justify a wide range of economic interests, including prohibitions on economic espionage, anti-competitive behaviour, and the regulation of government takings. This note challenges the panel's interpretation, arguing that it is flawed and essentially amounts to a factual standard of review. It proposes an alternative approach to public morals review, which involves an objective standard of review of facts and law, while providing adequate deference to Members’ own factual determinations. It further engages with the issue of extraterritoriality, defending an approach based on Members’ legislative jurisdiction as this strikes a balance between Members’ right to regulate trade for moral purposes and the interests of the international community.

“公共道德”例外仍然是国际贸易体系的一个关键方面；然而，它的外部界限从未被精确定义过。这个问题在美国关税措施中变得相关小组报告，该报告广泛解读了例外情况，以证明广泛的经济利益是正当的，包括禁止经济间谍活动、反竞争行为和监管政府收入。本说明对专家组的解释提出质疑，认为它存在缺陷，本质上相当于一个事实审查标准。它提出了一种公共道德审查的替代方法，该方法涉及审查事实和法律的客观标准，同时充分尊重议员自己的事实决定。它进一步涉及治外法权问题，捍卫基于成员立法管辖权的方法，因为这在成员出于道德目的管理贸易的权利与国际社会的利益之间取得了平衡。