Introduction

The idea of publishing a special issue of the Quebec Journal of International Law in tribute to Gabrielle Marceau’s exceptional career was conceived during the first biennial conference of the Quebec Society of International Law (QSIL), held on 26 and 27 September 2024 at the University of Ottawa. Discussing Gabrielle’s upcoming retirement from the World Trade Organization (WTO), we asked her if a publication highlighting both her immense scientific contribution and the profound human mark she has left on our community was in the works. Her negative response genuinely surprised us: we immediately offered to coordinate such a tribute, a proposal she accepted with sincere and undisguised joy. Less than 12 months later, the challenge has been met: this special issue brings together contributions from her friends and colleagues, including some of the most influential voices in public international law and international economic law. Choosing the Quebec Journal of International Law was an obvious choice. Born in Quebec City, Gabrielle seemed destined to pursue legal studies. She began her studies at the Faculty of Law of Laval University, in the Charles-de-Koninck building (named after her maternal grandfather) before continuing at the University of Sherbrooke. Her career then took off internationally, with graduate studies in England and work in Switzerland, where she led an impressive double professional life: senior official at the WTO and associate professor at the University of Geneva. Despite her resolutely international career, Gabrielle has always remained deeply attached to Quebec and its internationalists. Each return to North America was an opportunity for her to share special moments with us: conferences, juries, delicious meals or stays in her magnificent family home in Charlevoix. True to her generosity, she always supported the next generation of Quebecers, offering advice, encouragement and decisive help. Her ties with the QSIL are strong and long-standing, and the Board of Directors recognised this by awarding her the title of honorary member in May 2025—a rare distinction, awarded to only four people in over 40 years, and one of which we are particularly proud. Today, as she brings her career in Geneva to a close, Gabrielle is starting a new chapter: since March 1, 2025, she has been a visiting professor at the University of Ottawa. This special issue does not mark the end of her journey, but rather a new stage, celebrated here with all the admiration, gratitude and affection she inspires in those who have had the good fortune to cross her path. Gabrielle Marceau is not like other people. Gifted with a keen intelligence, boundless energy, rare generosity, an ability to thrive in both the practical and academic worlds, fluency in both French and English, committed to supporting and mentoring young people, and, to top it all off, possessed of a genuine humility that sometimes borders on questioning her own abilities, she has left a profound mark on the global international trade law community. This tribute aims to honour and celebrate this exceptional woman. For more than four decades, Gabrielle has helped shape legal thinking and foster dialogue among stakeholders—academics, practitioners, diplomats, judges and students—on the multilateral trading system to make it more sustainable, coherent and inclusive. This book was intended to reflect this rich diversity. The challenge was met: in less than a year, 29 authors agreed to contribute by submitting an analytical text on one of Gabrielle’s favourite subjects. They are presented in four parts. The first concerns the WTO and aims to explore the institutional and political tensions at the heart of the multilateral system. The second delves into WTO law to analyse its rules of interpretation, legal practices …