The Status of Precautionary Principle: Moving Towards the Rule of Customary Law

Abstract

The main goal of this article is to analyse the current status of the precautionary principle in international law and outline the tendencies of its development into a rule of customary law. The methods of comparative and systematic analysis were used in this paper. The article concludes that there is sufficient state practice and opinio iuris to support the position of the European Communities that the precautionary principle has already crystallized into a general customary rule. Evidence may be found in international legally binding and non-binding documents, domestic law, and the jurisprudence of national and international courts and tribunals.