The Administrative Approach to International Liability ‎Resulting from Genetically Modified Organisms

The Nagoya-Kuala Lumpur Supplementary Protocol to the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety was adopted in 2010 to establish international rules and regulations on liability and redress for damages to biosafety resulting from the transboundary displacement of genetically modified organisms in order to protect sustainable use of biodiversity. Based on strict liability, the protocol holds the operators responsible for their activities, merely by establishing a causal link between the damages incurred and the genetically modified organisms without the need to prove any fault. The protocol also provides two general approaches to prevent and redress any harm to biodiversity: the administrative and the civil liability approaches. This article's main question is how to define the administrative approach and its differences with the civil liability approach? The research hypothesis, which has been proven by a descriptive-analytical method, indicates that these two approaches are not inherently different as regards the necessity to allocate and redress loss. However, with an administrative approach, there is no longer a need for lengthy trials, as it provides a more efficient system for biodiversity protection. The international liability system for genetically modified organisms provides a standard set of legal provisions that helps the Biological Diversity Convention's member states to safely produce, distribute, and transport genetically modified organisms by adopting a strict liability basis and an administrative approach for redress.