Genetic engineering representative – who is that?
Dr. Petra KauchShare
The Genetic Engineering Act names a total of three responsible parties in genetic engineering facilities. These are the operator (Section 3 No. 7 GenTG), the project manager (Section 3 No. 8 GenTG), and the biological safety officer (Section 3 No. 9 GenTSV). In practice, it is suggested that the operator can appoint a genetic engineering representative who would then be responsible for compliance with general occupational safety obligations on behalf of the operator. This requires further clarification.
First of all, the term “genetic engineering representative” suggests that the person appointed as the authorized representative can act on the operator’s authority. This would imply that the authorized representative can establish legal relationships on behalf of the operator, i.e., conclude contracts. This would not entail the transfer of operator responsibilities to the authorized representative. In practice, however, authorization, i.e., the granting of a power of attorney, is generally not meant. Rather, a person not named in the Genetic Engineering Act is supposed to perform certain tasks of the operator. This is not an authorization, but a transfer of duties. In this respect, the term “genetic engineering representative” would probably be more appropriate, since the representative does not act on the operator’s authority, but rather because the operator has transferred certain duties to them. Two things must be taken into account when transferring duties: First, the appointment of a genetic engineering “authorized representative” does not alone mean that they are supposed to perform operator responsibilities. Rather, the individual operator obligations must be transferred to the respective operator in a concrete and specific manner. Furthermore, a general transfer of all operator obligations under the Genetic Engineering Act and its legal systems to a third party is not permissible. This will also apply to the person falsely designated as a genetic engineering representative.
This publication can also be found on the website of the law firm Dr. Kauch .