International Law, Corporate Law, and Governance Gaps

Global Business ◽

Human Rights Abuses ◽

Corporate Form ◽

Corporate Social ◽

Conceptual Foundations

This chapter explains how domestic US corporate law ignores human rights considerations and contributes to governance gaps. It offers an overview of the conceptual foundations of the corporate form that serve to place rights at risk. It argues that voluntary corporate social responsibility initiatives, leadership on the part of management, and more inclusive configurations of corporate governance can contribute to creating better business practices consistent with respect for human rights. This chapter also explains how international human rights law is inadequate to address human rights abuses where corporate actors are implicated. It offers an overview of the conceptual foundations of international law that render global business enterprises difficult to regulate and hold to account for alleged abuses. It argues that a wide array of actors beyond states must be recognized as possessing the potential to participate in the creation of policies to regulate business practices with respect to human rights.

The Home State Duty to Regulate the Human Rights Impacts of TNCs Abroad: A Rebuttal

Business and Human Rights Journal ◽

10.1017/bhj.2017.29 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 3 (1) ◽

pp. 47-73 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Claire METHVEN O’BRIEN

Keyword(s):

Human Rights ◽

International Law ◽

General Structure ◽

Human Rights Law ◽

Human Rights Abuses ◽

Home State ◽

Legal Duty ◽

Extraterritorial Jurisdiction ◽

Made In

AbstractScholars have suggested that ‘home’ states of transnational corporations (TNCs) have a legal duty to protect against human rights abuses occurring in ‘host’ states that may be breached by failure to regulate TNCs’ extraterritorial activities. This article challenges the claim that such a duty of home states to regulate TNCs’ extraterritorial human rights impacts can be said currently to exist as a matter of law. The article first summarizes the general structure of arguments made in favour of such a ‘home state duty to regulate’. It then considers the foundations and meanings of extraterritorial jurisdiction in public international law and international human rights law; requirements and conditions of attribution and state responsibility for the conduct of non-state actors; and the scope and limits of ‘positive obligations’ to ensure the effective enjoyment of human rights, domestically and extraterritorially, as they relate to prevention of human rights abuses by TNCs.

Development of International Human Rights Law in Business and Human Rights: Clarity and Effectiveness as 'Norms of Conduct' for Companies

Impact ◽

10.21820/23987073.2021.3.38 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 2021 (3) ◽

pp. 38-40

Author(s):

Emi Sugawara

Keyword(s):

Human Rights ◽

Associate Professor ◽

Theory And Practice ◽

Human Rights Law ◽

Global Business ◽

Human Rights Abuses ◽

Business And Human Rights ◽

International Human

Businesses have a significant impact on the lives of their employees, consumers and local people, and it is important that their rights are protected. That is why there are laws in place to this effect. However, despite such laws, stakeholders' rights and freedoms are not always respected, and in some countries, these laws don't exist at all, which is why the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights addresses human rights abuses committed in global business operations. But there remains a gap between the theory and practice of business and human rights. Associate Professor Emi Sugawara, Osaka University of Economics and Law, Japan, is seeking to bridge this gap. To this end, her team of frontline researchers of international human rights is working to reassess clarity and effectiveness of international human rights law as 'norms of conduct' for companies through a theoretical consideration. Ultimately, the researchers want to fill knowledge gaps related to business and human rights and influence Japanese society, effecting positive change.

Making Human Rights a Reality

10.23943/princeton/9780691155357.001.0001 ◽

2013 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Emilie M. Hafner-Burton

Keyword(s):

Human Rights ◽

International Law ◽

World Population ◽

National Human Rights Institutions

Legal Norms ◽

Human Rights Protection ◽

National Human ◽

The World ◽

Protection Of Human Rights ◽

In the last six decades, one of the most striking developments in international law is the emergence of a massive body of legal norms and procedures aimed at protecting human rights. In many countries, though, there is little relationship between international law and the actual protection of human rights on the ground. This book takes a fresh look at why it's been so hard for international law to have much impact in parts of the world where human rights are most at risk. The book argues that more progress is possible if human rights promoters work strategically with the group of states that have dedicated resources to human rights protection. These human rights “stewards” can focus their resources on places where the tangible benefits to human rights are greatest. Success will require setting priorities as well as engaging local stakeholders such as nongovernmental organizations and national human rights institutions. To date, promoters of international human rights law have relied too heavily on setting universal goals and procedures and not enough on assessing what actually works and setting priorities. This book illustrates how, with a different strategy, human rights stewards can make international law more effective and also safeguard human rights for more of the world population.

Can Multinational Corporations be responsible for human rights violation of its outsourcee company? Response of national or international law?

International and Comparative Law Review ◽

10.2478/iclr-2020-0007 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 20 (1) ◽

pp. 153-179

Author(s):

Alessandro Suppa ◽

Pavel Bureš

Keyword(s):

Human Rights ◽

International Law ◽

Multinational Corporations ◽

Corporate Law ◽

International Economy ◽

Due Diligence ◽

Business And Human Rights ◽

Original Question ◽

Definition Of ◽

Human Rights Violation

SummaryNowadays, an important role in the world is played by Multinational Corporations (MNCs). They hire, produce, and influence the international economy, but also, they exploit, pollute. Their business activities might have a worldwide effect on human lives. The question of the responsibility of MNCs has drawn the attention of many scholars, mainly from the study field labelled “Business and Human Rights”. The present paper does not examine the topic under the same approach. The authors aim at presenting the issue in a broader perspective, exploring the concept of due diligence both in international and corporate law. In this paper, authors strategically use the uniformity of national legislations as a possible and alternative solution to the issue. They are aware of three fundamental factors: 1) the definition of MNCs needs to be as clear as possible, so to avoid any degree of uncertainty; 2) the outsourcing phenomenon interacts with that definition; 3) in case of no possibility to include outsourcing in the definition of MNC, the original question arises in a significant way.

The Review of Articles from Korea International Law Review (Vol. 1-49): International Human Rights Law

Korea International Law Review ◽

10.25197/kilr.2018.51.45 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 51 ◽

pp. 45-62

Author(s):

Buhm Suk Baek

Keyword(s):

Human Rights ◽

International Law ◽

Human Rights Law ◽

International Human

The Idea of International Human Rights Law

10.1093/oso/9780198749844.001.0001 ◽

2019 ◽

Author(s):

Steven Wheatley

Keyword(s):

Human Rights ◽

International Law ◽

Human Rights Law ◽

Fragmentation Of International Law

Moral Concept ◽

Customary International Law ◽

Human Rights Treaties ◽

International Human ◽

International Human Rights Law has emerged as an academic subject in its own right, separate from, but still related to, International Law. This book explains the distinctive nature of the new discipline by examining the influence of the moral concept of human rights on general international law. Rather than make use of moral philosophy or political theory, the work explains the term ‘human rights’ by examining its usage in international law practice, on the understanding that words are given meaning through their use. Relying on complexity theory to make sense of the legal practice in the United Nations, the core human rights treaties, and customary international law, The Idea of International Human Rights Law shows how a moral concept of human rights emerged, and then influenced the international law doctrine and practice on human rights, a fact that explains the fragmentation of international law and the special nature of International Human Rights Law.

In Lieu of a Conclusion

10.1093/oso/9780198753957.003.0008 ◽

2018 ◽

Author(s):

John Linarelli ◽

Margot E Salomon ◽

Muthucumaraswamy Sornarajah

Keyword(s):

Human Rights ◽

International Law ◽

Global Economy ◽

Human Rights Law ◽

Current State ◽

Neoliberal Capitalism ◽

Transformative Potential ◽

International Economic Law ◽

Human Rights Norms

This chapter recaps the main themes of the volume, ie that the international law of the global economy is in a state of disorder. Claims about the justice, fairness, or benefits of the current state of international law as it relates to the global economy are fanciful. A more credible picture emerges when one considers who is protected, against what, and those relations that are valued and those that are not. Moreover, these claims above all require a suspension of a reflective attitude about what international law actually says and does. When it comes to international economic law, power is masked behind a veil of neutrality when it certainly is not neutral in the interests it protects and offends. As for international human rights law, it overlooks the ways in which it props up extreme capitalism foreclosing the possibility of transformative structural change to neoliberal capitalism. In its most radical areas, human rights norms have been blocked from making demands on the design of the global economy precisely because of their transformative potential. Among the central critiques of international law presented in this book is that international law must be justifiable to those who are subject to it.

Governmental human rights focal points in federal contexts: The implementation of the Istanbul convention in Switzerland as a case study

Netherlands Quarterly of Human Rights ◽

10.1177/09240519211016947 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 092405192110169

Author(s):

Matthieu Niederhauser

Keyword(s):

Domestic Violence ◽

Human Rights ◽

International Law ◽

Focal Points ◽

Human Rights Law ◽

Federal States ◽

International Human

The implementation of international human rights law in federal States is an underexplored process. Subnational entities regularly enjoy a degree of sovereignty, which raises questions such as whether they implement obligations of international law and how the federal level may ensure that implementation takes place at the subnational level. This article aims to answer these questions, using the implementation of the Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence against Women and Domestic Violence (Convention) in Switzerland as a case study. To implement the Convention at the cantonal level, federal actors decided to use networks of civil servants in charge of domestic violence issues, who act as governmental human rights focal points (GHRFPs). This article is based on original empirical data, on 25 interviews with State officials who participate in this implementation. The findings show how complex GHRFPs networks work in practice to implement the Convention and highlight the role played by numerous non-legal State actors in this process. As a result, the article argues that international human rights law implementation becomes more diversified both within and across federal States.

When Rights Enter the CSR Field: British Firms’ Engagement with Human Rights and the UN Guiding Principles

Human Rights Review ◽

10.1007/s12142-020-00614-w ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Alvise Favotto ◽

Kelly Kollman

Keyword(s):

Human Rights ◽

Management Practices ◽

Global Markets ◽

Business Practices ◽

Due Diligence ◽

New Governance ◽

Business And Human Rights ◽

Market Competitiveness ◽

Guiding Principles ◽

Corporate Social

AbstractThe adoption of the Guiding Principles for Business and Human Rights by the United Nations (UNGPs) in 2011 created a new governance instrument aimed at improving the promotion of human rights by business enterprises. While reaffirming states duties to uphold human rights in law, the UNGPs called on firms to promote the realization of human rights within global markets. The UNGPs thus have sought to embed human rights more firmly within the field of corporate social responsibility (CSR) and to use CSR practices to improve corporate human rights accountability. In this paper, we explore how this incorporation of human rights into the CSR field has affected the business practices and public commitments British firms have made to promote human rights. We analyse the CSR reports published by the 50 largest British firms over a 20-year period starting in the late 1990s and interview senior CSR managers of these firms. We find that these firms have expanded how they articulate their responsibility for human rights over time. These commitments however remain largely focused on improving management practices such as due diligence and remediation procedures. Firms are often both vague and selective about which substantive human rights they engage with in light of their concerns about their market competitiveness and broader legitimacy. These outcomes suggest that, while firms cannot completely resist the normative pressures exerted by the CSR field, they retain significant resources and agency in translating such pressure into concrete practices.

SECURING HUMAN RIGHTS IN THE FACE OF INTERNATIONAL INTEGRATION

International and Comparative Law Quarterly ◽

10.1017/s0020589310000692 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 60 (1) ◽

pp. 125-165 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Israel de Jesús Butler

Keyword(s):

Human Rights ◽

International Law ◽

Regional Level ◽

Human Rights Law ◽

Governmental Organizations ◽

The Face ◽

International Obligations ◽

Increasing Risk

AbstractThe continuous transfer of authority from the national sphere to inter-governmental organizations gives rise to an increasing risk that States may be mandated by their obligations under these organizations to take measures that are inconsistent with their obligations under International Human Rights Law. Drawing on the approaches of various international, regional and national jurisdictions, this article explores two possible models for restructuring International Law that could ensure that human rights obligations remain effective. The ‘international constitutional’ approach would ensure that human rights are enshrined within the ‘constitutional’ instruments of IGOs, preventing incompatible rules from emerging. The ‘parochial’ approach would ensure that human rights as protected at the national or regional level would take precedence over conflicting international obligations.