This timely book discusses various international norms that qualify the right, which all states have, to access and exploit living resources in marine areas beyond national jurisdiction, in order to promote the conservation of such species.

It highlights current trends and developments which aim at better coherence, and discusses legal techniques that could serve to harmonize both the objectives of these international norms and their scope of applicability. The author also demonstrates that in some cases, gaps and conflicts in the existing legal framework cannot be simply ‘interpreted away’ but require the further development of International law in order to be resolved.