Over the next few years, lawmakers and regulators in many jurisdictions will deepen their implementation of new human rights laws that impose significantly higher compliance burdens on companies. Concerns over whether...more
8/12/2024
/ Compliance ,
Corporate Governance ,
Due Diligence ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
EU ,
EU Directive ,
Human Rights ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Trafficking ,
UN Guiding Principles ,
Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA)
On April 23, 2024, the European Parliament adopted, by an overwhelming 555-6 majority, a landmark law that will establish a sweeping and forceful regulatory regime to prohibit any products made using forced labor from being...more
6/26/2024
/ Compliance ,
Corporate Governance ,
Due Diligence ,
Enforcement ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
EU ,
Forced Labor ,
Human Rights ,
Human Trafficking ,
New Legislation ,
Penalties ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Supply Chain ,
Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA)
On April 23, 2024, the European Parliament adopted, by an overwhelming 555-6 majority, a landmark law that will establish a sweeping and forceful regulatory regime to prohibit any products made using forced labor from being...more
The U.S. House of Representatives recently passed a new measure, H.R. 4039, which would prohibit any funding for programs within the State Department and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) that involve...more
4/9/2024
/ China ,
Corporate Governance ,
Customs and Border Protection ,
Forced Labor ,
Funding ,
Human Rights ,
International Trade ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Modern Slavery Act ,
NDAA ,
New Legislation ,
Supply Chain ,
U.S. House ,
USAID ,
Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA)
Customs and Border Protection Impounds Thousands of Volkswagen Vehicles -
On February 14, 2024, it was reported that U.S. Customs and Border Protection (“CBP”) had impounded thousands of Volkswagen Group’s (“Volkswagen”)...more
Much has been said about the Foreign Extortion Prevention Act (“FEPA”) that President Biden signed into the law in December 2023, with particular attention given to the corrupt foreign officials who seek bribes from...more
A few days before Christmas, the Senate followed the House in bringing its legislative year to a swift but unsatisfying end. Although enough bipartisan goodwill was mustered to pass a massive National Defense Authorization...more
The U.S. Congress has passed the Foreign Extortion Prevention Act (“FEPA”), as part of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2024 (“NDAA”). On December 14, 2023, the measure was sent to President Biden, who...more
Nine months after the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA) went into effect, the Biden Administration shows no signs of easing up on its tenacious enforcement of the Act’s import ban. At the same time, the...more
On June 13, 2022, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Customs and Border Protection (“CBP”) published guidance for importers regarding compliance requirements under the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (“UFLPA”),...more
6/20/2022
/ Biden Administration ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Cross Border Privacy Rules (CBPR) ,
Due Diligence ,
Entity List ,
Forced Labor ,
Importers ,
New Guidance ,
Required Documentation ,
Supply Chain ,
Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA)
On February 3, Senators Josh Hawley (R-MO) and Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) introduced the Slave-Free Business Certification Act of 2022. The legislation aims to provide U.S. policymakers with greater assurances that companies...more
3/11/2022
/ Audits ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
EU ,
Forced Labor ,
Human Rights ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Slavery ,
State and Local Government ,
State Legislatures ,
Supply Chain ,
Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA)
On January 7, New York State Senator Alessandra Biaggi (D) and Assemblywoman Anna R. Kelles (D) introduced the Fashion Sustainability Act into the New York State Legislature. If passed and signed into law, the Act would...more
2/1/2022
/ Enforcement ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
EU ,
Fashion Industry ,
Human Rights ,
Legislative Agendas ,
New Legislation ,
New York ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
State and Local Government ,
Supply Chain ,
Sustainability
The U.S. Congress has passed a landmark piece of legislation that prohibits the importation of goods from an entire region due to the high risk of severe forced labor abuses there. The legislation – the Uyghur Forced Labor...more
12/22/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
China ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Disclosure ,
Due Diligence ,
EU ,
Forced Labor ,
Importers ,
Imports ,
New Legislation ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
On June 16, 2021, the U.S. House of Representatives passed legislation that would impose new ESG due diligence and disclosure requirements on publicly traded companies. H.R. 1187 – the ESG Disclosure Simplification Act of...more
6/28/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Climate Change ,
Corporate Social Responsibility ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Due Diligence ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Executive Orders ,
Financial Services Committee ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Sustainability
On June 16, 2021, the U.S. House of Representatives passed legislation that would impose new ESG due diligence and disclosure requirements on publicly traded companies. H.R. 1187, the ESG Disclosure Simplification Act of...more
6/24/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Corporate Governance ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Due Diligence ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Executive Orders ,
New Legislation ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Sustainability
On March 10, 2021, the European Parliament approved a legislative measure by an overwhelming 504-79 majority that paves the way for a landmark set of regulations setting a corporate duty of care regarding environmental...more
3/26/2021
/ Compliance ,
Due Diligence ,
Duty of Care ,
Environmental Litigation ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
EU ,
European Parliament ,
Human Rights ,
New Legislation ,
Proposed Rules ,
Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (SMEs) ,
Supply Chain ,
Sustainability ,
United States
On December 10, 2020, President Trump formally announced that the Government of Israel and the Kingdom of Morocco will normalize their bilateral relationship, marking the fourth Arab country that recognizes Israel as a result...more
On December 16, 2020, the Securities and Exchange Commission issued a new regulation that revises and reinstitutes a previously-repealed SEC regulation to implement Section 1504 of the Dodd-Frank Act.
The new rule is the...more
12/18/2020
/ Biden Administration ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Foreign Governments ,
Natural Resources ,
New Regulations ,
New Rules ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Section 1504 ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Transparency ,
Trump Administration
In a landmark development, the European Union’s Foreign Ministers on December 8 approved an “Action Plan on Human Rights and Democracy” that establishes a new mechanism for targeting systematic violators of human rights from...more
12/9/2020
/ Anti-Corruption ,
Biden Administration ,
Canada ,
China ,
Estonia ,
EU ,
EU Action Plans ,
Gibraltar ,
Global Magnitsky Act ,
Human Rights ,
Latvia ,
Lithuania ,
Obama Administration ,
Sanctions ,
Supply Chain ,
UK
The Australian Government has launched an online register that publishes companies’ statements on their compliance with the country’s Federal Modern Slavery Act of 2018. The website, which is searchable and available to the...more
9/1/2020
/ Australia ,
Compliance ,
Corporate Governance ,
Due Diligence ,
Human Rights ,
Modern Slavery Act ,
Supply Chain ,
Trafficking ,
Transparency ,
UK ,
Websites
As the United States seeks to take more forceful action punishing China for its escalating human rights abuses against Muslim ethnic minorities in the Xinjiang autonomous region and the citizens of Hong Kong, international...more
7/22/2020
/ China ,
Due Diligence ,
Enforcement ,
Forced Labor ,
Global Magnitsky Act ,
Human Rights ,
Muslims ,
Popular ,
Supply Chain ,
Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 ,
Trump Administration
The Murder of George Floyd on May 25th by a white Minneapolis police officer did not happen in a vacuum. It was not an aberration in an “otherwise functioning” justice system. Countless black men and women in America have...more
7/2/2020
/ Africa ,
Black Lives Matter ,
China ,
Foreign Policy ,
Human Rights ,
Middle East ,
Military Conflict ,
Murder ,
Muslims ,
Police Brutality ,
Political Parties ,
Protests ,
Race Discrimination ,
Race Relations ,
Secretary of State ,
Trump Administration ,
United Nations
The COVID-19 pandemic is one of the most significant global public health crises since the Influenza Pandemic of 1918-20. The spread of the Coronavirus through every continent and major metropolis has led to unprecedented...more
The Trump Administration is using the reauthorization of a pipeline safety statute as an opening to insert new provisions that would give U.S. authorities broader latitude to thwart and criminalize the activities of...more
7/11/2019
/ Activist ,
Criminal Penalties ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Energy Projects ,
First Amendment ,
Human Rights ,
Hydrocarbons ,
Keystone XL Pipeline ,
New Legislation ,
Oil & Gas ,
PHMSA ,
Pipelines ,
Popular ,
Private Property ,
Protests ,
Reauthorization ,
Trespass ,
Trump Administration
The Dutch Senate recently adopted the Child Labour Due Diligence Act, a new measure with far reaching implications for the sourcing, manufacturing, and consumption of products that contain inputs from the bodies of child...more
6/10/2019
/ Child Labor ,
Corporate Social Responsibility ,
Customs and Border Protection ,
Due Diligence ,
Forced Labor ,
Global Market ,
Human Rights ,
Modern Slavery Act ,
Netherlands ,
New Legislation ,
Risk Assessment ,
Supply Chain ,
UK