Senator Julie Miville-Dechêne recently introduced the 21st-Century Business Act (Bill S-285), a Senate public bill that proposes substantive amendments to the Canada Business Corporations Act (CBCA). The legislative proposal...more
On May, 3, 2023, the House of Commons passed Bill S-211, An Act to enact the Fighting Against Forced Labour and Child Labour in Supply Chains Act and to amend the Customs Tariff (the Act). The Act introduces a public...more
After several stalled efforts in recent years (see previous Bennett Jones blog posts on Bill C-423 and Bill S-216), Parliament is poised to pass a supply chain transparency law aimed at preventing and reducing the risk of...more
The Covid-19 pandemic and Russia’s aggression in Ukraine have disrupted supply chains and heightened the need for supply chain due diligence to ensure business continuity and sustainability. Coupled with these events are...more
Key Takeaways - Slave, forced, and child labor is a modern-day reality impacting some 40 million people throughout the world, by some estimates. Such practices are—and have always been—repugnant, and certainly have no place...more
The U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) has allocated $22 million to target the growing issue of abusive labor practices in the fashion industry, and specifically, to combat the use of child and forced labor in supply chains,...more
Matt Friedman is an expert on modern slavery in corporate supply chains and corporate best practices. He is the president and founder of the Mekong Club in Hong Kong which is a leader in uniting and mobilizing the private...more
As this space has addressed before, the California Transparency in Supply Chain Act (Civ. Code section 1714.43), enacted in 2010, requires large retailers and manufacturers (those with worldwide sales in excess of $100...more
In 2010, California enacted the California Transparency in Supply Chains Act (the “Act”). The goal of the Act is to curtail human trafficking and slavery by requiring certain manufacturers and retailers doing business in...more
[Warning: The juxtaposition of the jolly old man and forced labor is not to make light of human rights violations but to highlight the hidden evils in supply chains and the potential reputational damage to wholesome brands.] ...more
Amnesty International recently released a report alleging that supply chains for production of palm oil—a common ingredient in many consumer products—are tainted by forced and child labor. In the nearly 150-page report titled...more
The holiday retail season is an ideal time to check that forced labor and bribery—two top and interconnected supply-chain threats—do not undermine the success of your critical sales period. Not long ago, many in the...more
We recently blogged about a new wave of class action litigation related to California’s Transparency in Supply Chains Act. In December, Nestlé USA won the dismissal of a complaint against it alleging that the company was...more
A District Court judge in California has dismissed a complaint against Nestlé USA Inc. and Nestlé Purina Petcare Co. (together “Nestlé”) which argued that the company was obligated to inform consumers that seafood in its...more
The first round goes to the industry: on December 9, 2015, the Central District of California dismissed the complaint in Barber v. Nestle USA, a key bellwether case in a new wave of class action litigation related to...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
In late July, Representative Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) introduced H.R. 3226, the Business Supply Chain Transparency on Trafficking and Slavery Act of 2015. The bill, if passed, would require companies to file annual reports with...more
On July 27, 2015, U.S. Representatives Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) and Chris Smith (R-NJ) introduced the Business Supply Chain Transparency on Trafficking and Slavery Act of 2015 (H.R. 3226) (the "Bill"). The Bill would require...more