Chapter 1 : The notion of conflict of interest in The field of health and environment: philosophical and legal approaches

Abstract

This paper considers the conflict of interest in philosophical and legalperspective. the philosophical approach comes from two perspectives: politicalphilosophy focuses on the role of the link of interest in the city considered in thelight of a broader reflection on the conditions of living together. Antiquityphilosophers have enhanced the interest link as privileged vector of humanizationand socialization of individuals. in the eighteenth century, Adam smith considersthe pursuit of individual interests a stronger social base that love of neighboradvocated by Christians. Moral philosophy focuses specifically on the passage ofinterest linked to the conflict of interest. it wondered if we should be impartial inall circumstances or whether it’s right to give priority to our friends and lovedones. thus, it poses the question of whether introspection is sufficient to detectconflicts of interest or if the look of an external third party is still required.the legal process differs from the philosophical approach at two levels; on theone hand, its scope is more limited: the law doesn’t envisage the benefits of linksof interest on social life even though it may protect some of them (in the contextof the family, for example) and is intended to prevent bias that may taint thedecision public. on the other hand, the lawyer doesn’t enter the interiority ofindividuals but stands by what appears on the outside: it tracks the suspicion ofbias can have serious impacts, such as health and the environment. somehow, itis more radical. it’s noteworthy that despite its many developments, the law can’tto stop conflicts of interest in research. several reasons account for this impasse:scientists receive mission to partner with industry to develop products but theymust remain independent in order to assess the risks; there is a tendency toalways choose the same experts; there are conflicts of interest intellectuals whichare not easy to detect