ContractPrivate Contract Law • October 2nd, 2014
Ultimately, genetic resources and associated traditional knowledge (TK) are transferred for R&D and other purposes from provider to users through private contracts which are legally binding documents between the two parties. Such contracts can take a number of forms, including bioprospecting agreements, material transfer agreements (MTAs) and collaborative research agreements.296 These contracts may be considered benefit sharing agreements under the Nagoya Protocol provided they contain the terms for the sharing of benefits that may arise from the access and removal of the genetic resource and its utilization. The keepers of those genetic resources in the provider countries, whether they are the national ABS authority or an indigenous group, must therefore negotiate the terms of such contracts carefully in order to safeguard their interests.
