Looking for Law in All the Wrong Places? Dying Elephants, Evolving Treaties, and Empty Threats

Wandesforde‐Smith, Geoffrey

doi:10.1080/13880292.2016.1248701

Cited by 11 publications

(10 citation statements)

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“…Compliance is generally imperfect, with implementation and enforcement failures affecting even the most sophisticated legal instruments (Bowman et al 2010 , López-Bao et al 2015 , Wandesforde-Smith 2016 , Chapron et al 2017 ). Ideological differences between treaty parties pose another challenge, clearly evident in the recurrent debate within CITES over the relative weight to be given to strict protection versus sustainable use of rhinoceroses and elephants (Couzens 2014 , Wandesforde-Smith 2016 ). Similar strife within the International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling (ICRW) threatens to render this regime dysfunctional (Couzens 2014 ).…”

Section: Limitationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Essentially, international law cannot accomplish more than what the world's diverse and changeable national administrations, and ultimately the societies they represent, want it to—or are capable of realistically implementing. The hitherto less-than-satisfactory contribution of international wildlife law to addressing biodiversity loss reflects at least in part, then, an overall reluctance of governments and societies to impose long-term and enforceable constraints on economic development and other human ambitions (Wandesforde-Smith 2016 ). Expectations of what international wildlife law can deliver must accommodate this reality, especially because some of the competing aspirations may also be backed by legal commitments (e.g., trade agreements).…”

Section: Limitationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…To illustrate, despite certain limitations and an imperfect compliance record (Wandesforde-Smith 2016 , Zhou et al 2016 ), CITES tangibly contributes to the conservation of species harmed by trade (OECD 2000 , Doukakis 2012, Couzens 2014 ). For instance, the conservation status of jaguars ( Panthera onca ) and other South American felids notably improved after a CITES ban on trade in their pelts took effect in 1975 (Di Marco et al 2014 ).…”

Section: Opportunitiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

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International Wildlife Law: Understanding and Enhancing Its Role in Conservation

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Section: Limitationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Limitationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Opportunitiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

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International Wildlife Law: Understanding and Enhancing Its Role in Conservation

et al. 2017

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“…On the other hand, and this goes in part to the problem of potential normative ambiguity, 'apart from CITES there is no other international environmental law that can be invoked to counteract species loss from wildlife crime'. 76 If we focus specifically on the criminal aspects of the illegal wildlife trade, CITES is at the heart of liaison diplomacy and regulatory conversations on law enforcement. The most extensive arrangement in this respect is the ICCWC, a cooperative arrangement between CITES, INTERPOL, UNODC, WCO and the World Bank.…”

Section: Normative Ambiguity: the Case Of Wildlife Crimementioning

confidence: 99%

Cooperation on Transnational Environmental Crime: Institutional Complexity Matters

Elliott¹

2017

Rev Euro Comp Intl Enviro

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There have been clear calls for enhanced international cooperation to meet the environmental, economic and criminal challenges of transnational environmental crime (TEC), defined here to include illegal wildlife trade, timber trafficking and the black market in ozone-depleting substances. In the absence of an overarching international or transnational environmental crime legal framework, institutional settings are characterized by regime density and complexity amid a growing number of actors across related but distinct institutional settings. Scholars of international cooperation have worried that this kind of complexity leads to legal indeterminacy, normative ambiguity and regulatory uncertainty that will make cooperation more difficult. In the TEC sphere, these propositions remain under-researched and untested. This article sketches the contours of a study that would bring some conceptual and empirical clarity to these issues. In doing so, it outlines the constitutive elements of the TEC regime complex and the nature of institutional interplay between and among those elements.

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“…Even though CITES has been adopted by 182 countries and the European Union, implementation of CITES legislation remains inconsistent, compliance at times lacking, and listed species still face extinction (CITES 2016 ; Reeve 2006 ; Wyatt 2013 ). Furthermore, the minimal research that there is related to CITES (Reeve 2002 ) has largely been limited to conservationists and political scientists with legal scholars having recently contributed to the discussions (see Wandesforde-Smith 2016 among others). There has never been an empirical study of the effectiveness of CITES (Reeve 2002 ) and there are a lack of empirical case studies related to implementation and compliance.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Canada and the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES): Lessons Learned on Implementation and Compliance

Wyatt

2020

Liverpool Law Rev

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Unsustainable and illegal wildlife trade are contributing to the unprecedented levels of biodiversity loss and possible extinction of one million species. Law enforcement and the criminal justice system have a role to play in helping to regulate and monitor such trade. The main international instrument to regulate wildlife trade is the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). This mixed methods study researched the lessons learned and best practice in regards to implementation of and compliance with CITES. As part of the study, three countries were identified as case studies and Canada was selected as one of these. Lessons can also be learned from Canada’s Wild Animal and Plant Protection and Regulation of International and Interprovincial Trade Act, which is cumbersome to update when species protections change within CITES. Canada has several elements of good practice, such as the remit, effectiveness and relationships of the three CITES authorities located within Environment and Climate Change Canada, the public health approach to some wildlife imports, and the protection of native CITES species. CITES needs to be improved to further protect endangered species and lessons from Canada and other countries can contribute to this improvement.

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Looking for Law in All the Wrong Places? Dying Elephants, Evolving Treaties, and Empty Threats

Cited by 11 publications

References 1 publication

International Wildlife Law: Understanding and Enhancing Its Role in Conservation

International Wildlife Law: Understanding and Enhancing Its Role in Conservation

Cooperation on Transnational Environmental Crime: Institutional Complexity Matters

Canada and the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES): Lessons Learned on Implementation and Compliance

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