Over the last decade, a patchwork of national and supranational “business and human rights laws” has emerged requiring employers to conduct due diligence of their global operations to address human rights risks such as forced...more
On May 11, 2023, Canada passed An Act to enact Fighting Against Forced Labour and Child Labour in Supply Chains Act and to amend the Customs Tariff (the “Act”). As we reported previously, the Act will create supply chain...more
5/17/2023
/ Canada ,
Child Labor ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Corporate Social Responsibility ,
Forced Labor ,
Human Rights ,
Human Trafficking ,
International Labor Laws ,
Labor Reform ,
New Legislation ,
Slavery ,
Supply Chain
National and supranational legislatures continue to develop laws requiring employers to conduct due diligence of their operations and those of their business partners in order to address human rights risks such as forced...more
10/12/2022
/ Child Labor ,
Corporate Liability ,
Corporate Social Responsibility ,
Due Diligence ,
EU ,
EU Directive ,
Forced Labor ,
Human Rights ,
International Labor Laws ,
Japan ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Risk Management ,
Supply Chain ,
Switzerland
In January 2022, the New York State Senate introduced a bill that seeks to impose significant human rights and environmental due diligence and disclosure obligations on fashion retail sellers and manufacturers operating in...more
2/14/2022
/ Child Labor ,
Corporate Social Responsibility ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Fashion Branding ,
Fashion Industry ,
Forced Labor ,
Goods or Services ,
Human Rights ,
Human Trafficking ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Retail Market ,
Risk Mitigation ,
Slavery ,
Supply Chain ,
Sustainable Business Practices
On December 23, 2021, President Joe Biden signed into law the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (the “Act”), which bars the importation into the United States of products made from forced labor in the Xinjiang region of...more
1/3/2022
/ Biden Administration ,
China ,
Corporate Social Responsibility ,
Due Diligence ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Enforcement Priorities ,
Forced Labor ,
Human Rights ,
Imports ,
Manufacturers ,
Multinationals ,
Popular ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Supply Chain ,
US Trade Policies
This year has seen a number of international and regional legislative efforts imposing human rights due diligence and transparency obligations on multinational employers. ...more
10/28/2021
/ Canada ,
Corporate Governance ,
Corporate Liability ,
Corporate Social Responsibility ,
Due Diligence ,
EU ,
Forced Labor ,
Human Rights ,
Human Trafficking ,
International Labor Laws ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Multinationals ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Supply Chain ,
Transparency
Since it was established in 2014, a United Nations Inter-Governmental Working Group (“IGWG”) has met annually to develop a multilateral treaty to attempt to hold businesses legally accountable for harms that may be related to...more
11/6/2019
/ Corporate Governance ,
Corporate Liability ,
Corporate Social Responsibility ,
Due Diligence ,
Forced Labor ,
Human Rights ,
Human Trafficking ,
International Labor Laws ,
Multinationals ,
Supply Chain ,
Transparency ,
UN Guiding Principles ,
United Nations ,
Working Groups
Human rights issues increasingly require the assistance of experienced counsel who can help employers navigate very fluid and complex legal, business and societal considerations. ...more
10/16/2019
/ Corporate Governance ,
Corporate Social Responsibility ,
Due Diligence ,
Extraterritoriality Rules ,
Forced Labor ,
Human Rights ,
Human Trafficking ,
International Labor Laws ,
Multinationals ,
Supply Chain ,
Transparency ,
United Nations ,
Working Groups
In February 2019, the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (“Development Ministry”) introduced a draft law (the “Draft Law”) that seeks to mandate human rights due diligence for German companies...more
4/26/2019
/ Anti-Corruption ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Corporate Social Responsibility ,
Due Diligence ,
EU ,
Germany ,
Human Rights ,
Human Trafficking ,
Internal Controls ,
National Action Plan ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Risk Management ,
Supply Chain ,
Voluntary Compliance
On November 29, 2018, the Australian Government passed the Modern Slavery Act 2018 (the “Act”), which requires all companies operating in Australia and meeting a threshold of AU$100 million in total annual global revenue to...more
12/4/2018
/ Australia ,
Child Labor ,
Cooperative Compliance Regime ,
Corporate Social Responsibility ,
Forced Labor ,
Human Rights ,
Human Trafficking ,
International Labor Laws ,
Modern Slavery Act ,
New Legislation ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Slavery ,
Supply Chain
Two new California laws seek to combat human trafficking through required training and mandatory notice postings. These steps are intended to provide education and resources for employees who believe they, or someone they...more
10/3/2018
/ Child Labor ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Corporate Social Responsibility ,
Employee Training ,
Forced Labor ,
Human Rights ,
Human Trafficking ,
New Legislation ,
Posting Requirements ,
Risk Management ,
Slavery ,
State and Local Government ,
State Labor Laws ,
Supply Chain ,
Transparency
The Canadian Government recently announced two new initiatives to “strengthen Canada’s approach to responsible business conduct for Canadian companies doing business and operating abroad.” The first initiative is the creation...more
The Australian Government has announced plans to release draft legislation proposing the introduction of a “modern slavery in supply chains” reporting requirement. ...more
2/7/2018
/ Australia ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Corporate Social Responsibility ,
Forced Labor ,
Human Rights ,
Human Trafficking ,
Modern Slavery Act ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Public Disclosure ,
Supply Chain ,
Transparency
An ongoing debate exists regarding the nature and extent to which transnational companies should be held directly and legally liable for human rights impacts. Much of this debate has involved calls for additional regulation...more
11/10/2017
/ Burden of Proof ,
Burden-Shifting ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Corporate Social Responsibility ,
Corporate Veil ,
Due Diligence ,
Extraterritoriality Rules ,
Forced Labor ,
Human Rights ,
Human Trafficking ,
Multinationals ,
Supply Chain ,
UN Guiding Principles ,
Working Groups
In February 2017, legislatures in the Netherlands and France took significant steps to implement mandatory due diligence and reporting rules regarding the impact of an employer's operations and supply chains on human rights. ...more
3/14/2017
/ Child Labor ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Corporate Social Responsibility ,
Due Diligence ,
Forced Labor ,
France ,
Human Rights ,
Netherlands ,
New Legislation ,
Risk Assessment ,
Supply Chain
Courts in California and Canada have emerged as testing grounds for advancing claims of forced labor in global supply chains. The plaintiffs’ approach is to make companies more accountable to “soft law” norms like the UN...more
2/15/2017
/ Canada ,
Child Labor ,
Class Action ,
CLRA ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Costco ,
False Advertising ,
Forced Labor ,
Human Rights ,
Multinationals ,
Putative Class Actions ,
Supply Chain ,
Thailand ,
Third-Party Service Provider ,
UN Guiding Principles ,
Unfair Competition Law (UCL)
On December 16, 2016, the United States launched a National Action Plan (the “U.S. NAP”) on Responsible Business Conduct. The U.S. NAP seeks to operationalize the government’s role in encouraging responsible business conduct...more
1/18/2017
/ Business Conduct Standards ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Federal Contractors ,
Human Rights ,
OECD ,
Responsible Business Conduct ,
Supply Chain ,
Transparency Directive ,
Trump Administration ,
UK ,
United Nations ,
Working Groups
On November 29, 2016, France’s National Assembly adopted the text of a bill (the “Bill”) that, if enacted, would create new due diligence obligations for large French companies regarding their subsidiaries’ and supply chain...more
Recent class actions have claimed that companies have violated California consumer fraud and unfair competition laws resulting from alleged forced labor in their global supply chains. These state law claims argue that...more
10/15/2015
/ Alien Tort Statute ,
Child Labor ,
Class Action ,
Consumer Fraud ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Forced Labor ,
Human Rights ,
Human Trafficking ,
Kiobel v. Royal Dutch Petroleum Co. ,
Petition for Writ of Certiorari ,
SCOTUS ,
Slavery ,
Supply Chain ,
Transparency in Supply Chains Act ,
UN Guiding Principles ,
Unfair Competition
Non-Canadian workers are increasingly suing their employers in Canadian courts for human rights violations allegedly committed outside Canada by the companies themselves or by other entities in their supply chains. This...more
9/16/2015
/ ACTA ,
Alien Tort Statute ,
Amnesty International ,
British Columbia Supreme Court ,
Canada ,
Code of Conduct ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Due Diligence ,
Foreign Corporations ,
Foreign Workers ,
Human Rights ,
International Finance ,
Kiobel v. Royal Dutch Petroleum Co. ,
Negligence ,
OECD ,
Royal Dutch Petroleum ,
Standard of Care ,
Supply Chain ,
UN Guiding Principles