ABSTRACT
Legal regimes for the conservation and management of shark species exist at all levels of government: local, national, regional and international. The focus of this chapter is on the international laws that regulate activities relating to shark species, including regional practice. Some national practice is also taken into account because consistency and mutual reinforcement across multiple levels of governance is required if efforts for shark protection are to be successful. It is also relevant because international law does not usually have automatic effect in national law but must be adopted through parliamentary processes. In addition, efforts undertaken at local or national levels of government may reflect best practice that can be adopted more widely and generally indicate future trends — a trickle-up effect. The global legal regimes then anticipate a trickle- down effect as key stakeholders are engaged and international benchmarks are established. Coherency and integration are essential in legal regimes. Once these elements of legal governance are achieved, the implementation of the relevant legal rules will be more feasible and effective.
