Introduction : regulation of biotechnology, between anxieties and trust in scientific progress -- Law and ethics : an intriguing interplay -- Risks, perceptions and the law : regulatory approaches to risk -- The biotech challenge to human dignity, life and freedom of choice : human rights -- From test tube babies to human clones : salient issues in the international law of biomedicine -- GMOs, crops and precaution : biotechnology and the international protection of the environment -- Combating biopiracy : access to genetic resources -- Phantom risks and legitimate concerns : biotechnology and international trade law -- Inventor's claims to life : intellectual property rights and biotechnological inventions -- Conclusion : legal values, individual rights and democratic choices in a pluralist world.