Multilateral Cooperation in Tax Law

S. 3The Concept of Multilateralism and its Importance in Tax Law

Francis Waldner During de Souza Botelho

1. Introduction

This thesis aims to cover the concept of multilateralism, presenting a general concept as well as its relation and importance in tax law. It appraises the development of multilateralism in tax law, taking into account the historical developments and the economic and political power shifts that directly impacted the interactions between the different stakeholders that led to different ways of cooperation and relations.

The constant change in the relations of the different stakeholders involved in the global tax policy directly influences the way of cooperation between them. The current global economy and challenges brought by that also contribute to such a relationship. Cooperation has not been so much in debate as it is today since, ever more, the states and nonstate stakeholders need to support each other in the discussions as well as the relevance of multilateral cooperation.

From a perspective of cooperation, it is possible to identify the multitude of possibilities that multilateralism can bring to the actual discussion be it in a more general concept or focused on it...