The EU Directive on Corporate Sustainable Due Diligence has sparked fierce debate about the regulations of supply chains. The Directive's objectives are aligned with European values. Assuming that enforcements of social and environmental rules are absent in certain third countries, it privatises...

This study, commissioned by the European Parliament's Committee on Budgetary Control (CONT), investigates whether EU institutions implement human rights and sustainability due diligence when they purchase goods and services. Based on documentary analysis and interviews, this study finds that...

The EU's Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDD) will have a significant impact on foreign investments. The CSDD will compel some non-EU companies to conduct HRDD throughout their supply chains. This Perspective emphasizes the need to align IIAs with mandatory HRDD requirements...

The paper examines possible mechanisms for trade union engagement in global value chains, especially in the context of emerging human rights due diligence frameworks. By examining existing literature on value chain analysis, trade policy, and governance mechanisms, the paper tries to generate a...

After the agreement of the European Parliament and the Council of the EU in December 2023, a few formal steps remain to introduce the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD). The legislation is intended to improve environmental and labor standards along the chain of...

Corporate sustainability due diligence (CSDD) is needed in order to achieve a transition towards a green economy and deliver the UN Sustainable Development Goals. Therefore, the Commission proposed the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD) in 2019. In March 2024, the Council...

While the issue of corporate responsibility in global value chains for environmental harm or human rights abuses has been at the centre of discussions, the responsibility of financial institutions in the global value chain of money appears to be one of the new frontiers – and is probably one...

The article discusses how proactive contract theory could be used to translate the ambitious objectives of the European Commission's current draft proposal on corporate sustainability due diligence into actual business practices in complex value chains and networks. Proactive contract theory...

Over the last decade, significant legal developments seeking to implement the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs) have taken place at the domestic, regional, and international level. In particular, various types of laws have been developed in that respect. Some...

This paper shows that due diligence requirements have become an important addition to the legal and regulatory tool box. Through such requirements corporate actors are encouraged to set up and operate procedures that prevent certain outcomes from materialising. Liability can then be attached to...

This article examines the under-researched, inter-connected issues of substantive remedy and a role for OECD National Contact Points (NCPs), arguing that NCPs have important potential to complement judicial remedy institutions or administrative supervision. The EU’s corporate sustainability...

The aim of this chapter is to inform reflection on business self-regulation (or corporate social responsibility, ‘CSR’) in addressing climate change by drawing on developments in ‘business and human rights’ and the experience accumulated in the EU. Despite dissimilarities in addressing...

This paper discusses an effort of creative lawyering by a Working Group of the Business Law Section of the American Bar Association to help enable business clients to prevent and mitigate human rights abuse in their supply chains. A Working Group of the Business Section of the American Bar...

Corporate human rights due diligence is now a social fact; it is no longer merely an idea or aspiration. This paper uses economist Frank H. Knight’s famous, albeit controversial, distinction between risk and uncertainty to help elucidate foundational concepts and challenges for the theory,...

The policy challenge. Citizens and politicians in Western democracies have increasingly become aware of the importance of human rights, civil liberties, social rights, and sustainability issues as well as the different adherence to basic rights (such as equal treatment) all over the world. This...

We examine the value added by venture capital investors during the due-diligence process. We use data from a seed fund that quasi-randomly assigns applicants to due diligence, creating a natural experiment. We find that due-diligence assignment leads to higher average growth, even for companies...

The German government intends to establish standards for responsible sourcing of metals, and laid out its objectives in a position paper in January 2023 ("Paths to sus­tainable and resilient raw material supplies"). German firms source much of the metals they use through traders, exchanges and...

Risk is a big concern for anyone contemplating investing in new, especially innovative ventures. However, if successful, the returns can be extraordinary, serving as an impetus for many venture capitalists to provide greater funding. Still, many new ventures never see the end of the tunnel, and...

The debate on sustainability related corporate due diligence obligations in global value chains has recently gained considerable momentum, in particular at EU level. However, so far, it has been dominated by the focus on human rights due diligence. By contrast, relatively little attention has...

The European Commission is planning a new regulation for mandatory human rights and environmental due diligence (Due Diligence Directive) as part of the Sustainable Corporate Governance initiative. The longawaited EU proposal is expected to have requirements that go far beyond the German Act on...

This paper discusses an effort of creative lawyering to enable business clients to prevent and mitigate human rights abuse in their supply chains. Specifically, a Working Group of the Business Section of the American Bar Association has drafted suggested clauses for supply chain contracts...

In Canadian tax law, directors may face liability for a corporation's failure to withhold or remit certain tax and payroll amounts. To escape liability, directors can invoke the due diligence defence by demonstrating that they acted with the care, diligence, and skill of a "reasonably prudent...

In the past few years, different laws have been discussed and adopted in Europe aiming to strengthen corporate accountability in the areas of human rights and environmental protection. This article provides an overview of these developments, and identifies trends and debates related to mandatory...