The ruling propels UK law enforcement to increase its investigative powers under POCA, and businesses to enhance their supply chain due diligence.
By Paul A. Davies, Clare Nida, Pamela Reddy, Michael D. Green, James Bee, Annie Birch, and Esha Marwaha
On 27 June 2024, the UK Court of Appeal found that the National Crime Agency’s (NCA’s) decision not to launch an investigation into the importation of cotton products originating from the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous
The Private Members Bill, if passed, would establish the UK’s first law mandating business due diligence on human rights and the environment.
By Paul A. Davies, Michael D. Green, and James Bee
On 28 November 2023, Baroness Young of Hornsey (Baroness Young) introduced the Commercial Organisations and Public Authorities Duty (Human Rights and Environment) Bill (the Bill) to the UK House of Lords. The Bill seeks to establish the UK’s first law mandating certain companies to conduct human rights and environmental due diligence, and would also introduce an overarching duty for companies to prevent environmental and human rights abuses within their operations and value chains.
The Bill aims to level the playing field among businesses, provide clarity on legal obligations, and enable a greater level of access to justice. It also aims to align UK law with voluntary international standards, such as the United Nations (UN) Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Guidelines, and the International Labour Organization (ILO) Multinational Enterprises Guidelines.
The UFLPA aims to clamp down on the import of items produced by alleged forced labor in and relating to the XUAR.
By Erin Brown Jones, Les P. Carnegie, Paul A. Davies, Nathan H. Seltzer, James Bee, and Allison Hugi
On 16 December 2021, the US Senate unanimously passed the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA), following its approval in the US House of Representatives earlier the same week. The UFLPA is one of several measures that the US hopes to use to prevent what it views as forced labor and human rights abuses in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (the XUAR) of China. The UFLPA is the culmination of bipartisan attempts over a number of months to introduce a bill that would restrict imports from the XUAR.
By Paul Davies and Michael Green
Six Portuguese children are raising funds to sue 47 European countries, asserting that their right to life has been threatened because governments have allegedly failed to adequately deal with climate change.
With the support of lawyers from the Global Legal Action Network (GLAN), the children will ask nations in the suit to strengthen their emissions reduction policies, and to commit to keeping the majority of their existing fossil fuel reserves “in the ground”. The 47 countries targeted by the legal action are collectively responsible for approximately 15% of global greenhouse gas emissions, and include Europe’s “major emitters”, such as Germany, France, and the United Kingdom.
The children, who are between 5 and 14 years old, claim to have been directly affected by Portugal’s worst-ever forest fires in Leirria this summer, which resulted in more than 60 fatalities. Climate change is thought to have exacerbated the Iberian Peninsula’s extreme heatwave that extended the wildfire season from two months (July and August) to five months (June to October).
By Paul Davies and Michael Green
On March 27, 2017, the French Parliament adopted a Law On The Duty Of Vigilance For Parent And Subcontracting Companies. The law amends the Commerce Code and requires companies to establish and implement a plan for diligencing human rights, environmental, and health and safety issues in their supply chains.
The law is limited in scope. It applies to any company (an SA or SAS) that, at the end of two consecutive financial years, employs (i) at least five thousand employees within the company and its direct or indirect subsidiaries whose head offices are located in French territory, or that has (ii) at least ten thousand employees within its direct or indirect subsidiaries whose head offices are located in French territory or abroad.
Records suggest that some 243 entities employ more than 5000 employees in France (based on 2015 figures). Out of this number, it is estimated that only about 117 of them will be subject to the new requirements. The remainder, for now, fall outside of the scope of this new requirement (as they are partnerships or public bodies) Although some commentators had hoped for more companies to be included, it is likely that in due course this new law will be extended to others.
By Daniel Harrison and Jonathan Hew
Lawyers must have the intersection of business and human rights at the front of their minds, and in-house counsel are no exception. Human rights risks transcend borders and industries, and may lead to bet-the-company litigation and irreparable reputational harm. Lawyers should therefore welcome and heed recent practical guidance from the International Bar Association (IBA) on how to address this issue.
On 1 November 2016, the IBA launched the Reference Annex to the IBA Practical Guide on Business and Human Rights for Business Lawyers. The Reference Annex explains how lawyers should implement the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs), the global standard on human rights obligations for businesses.