The paper analyses the interaction between the governance structure consisting of the international treaties UPOV and TRIPS and the Argentine seed law and patent law the hierarchical instruments of state actors and the (non-)hierarchical instruments used by Monsanto to generate and implement a collectively binding norm regarding royalties on RR Soy and to alter the governance structure of rent appropriation. The paper addresses the reasons for the breakdown of Monsantos strategies in the struggle with the Argentine soy farmers and government and offers three possible explanations: conflict of legal norms, resistance of farmers associations, and the partial support of the Argentine government.