the venaLity of human Body Parts and Products in french and common Law

Resumen

the successive bioethics laws in France have constantly argued that the human
body is not for sale and consecrated an absolute principle of free and
anonymous donations, whether of semen, ova, blood, tissues or organs.
nonetheless, this position is not shared by all countries. these legal divergences
upset today our moral principles and the development of these practices leads
us to question the legal status of human biological material and its gradual
commodification.
this paper outlines the current law principles that protect people’s interests in
their bodies, excised body parts and tissues without conferring the rights of full
legal ownership in French law and in Common law. Contrary to what many
people believe, people do not legally ’own’ their bodies, body parts or tissues.
However, they do have some legal rights in relation to their bodies and excised
body material. For lawyers, the exact relationship people have with their bodies
has raised a host of complex questions and long debates about the status we
should grant to human body parts. the significance of this issue is due to two
reasons: first, because of the imperative protection we have to assure to human
dignity and then, because of the economic value which is attached to human
products.