나고야의정서상의 ‘이용’의 개념에 대한 소고

A Study on the Term of “Utilization” of the Genetic Resources in the Nagoya Protocol

After the Nagoya Protocol entered into force since 2014, the users of the genetic resources must obtain the prior informed consent(PIC) from the providers of the genetic resources, and the benefits arising from their utilization should be fairly and equitably shared upon mutually agreed terms. Since utilization of the genetic resources is the precondition to acquire the PIC and to request benefit sharing, the interpretation and its application of the term of ‘utilization’ in practice are very significant. This article, therefore, explores how the term of ‘utilization’ needs to be interpreted in a context of the Nagoya Protocol and Convention on Biodiversity, and it carries out comparative study to show how the term of ‘utilization’ is used in practice. Utilization means research and development on the genetic resources in a limited sense of the term, but it usually includes any subsequent application and commercialization as long as these actions are occurred from research and development. Indeed, the meaning of ‘utilization’ was comprehensively used in Parties to the Nagoya Protocol. The users also need to check the actions chosen by them would be included in the meaning of ‘utilization’ by the relevant laws and regulations of the providing countries, so they would need to obtain PIC and agree benefit sharing.