Under the new FCPA Corporate Enforcement Policy recently released by the Department of Justice (“DOJ”), when a company has voluntarily self-disclosed misconduct, fully cooperated in the government’s ensuing investigation, and appropriately remediated the situation and made restitution or otherwise disgorged all illicit profits, there is a now an express presumption – absent certain identified aggravating factors – that DOJ will affirmatively decline to prosecute the company.

This new Policy is an evolutionary step forward in enforcement – not a radical change.… More

Between November 27-29, over 2,000 delegates gathered in Geneva to attend the UN Forum on Business and Human Rights. The central theme of this year’s Forum was “Realizing Access to Effective Remedy,” which is the third Pillar of the U.N. Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (“U.N. Guiding Principles”).

A Working Group of specialists on international law, human rights, and conflict management have suggested one potential approach to strengthening the third Pillar,… More

It’s Friday and time for another overview of developments in the field of business and human rights that we’ve been monitoring.

This week’s post includes: a revised Toolkit on National Action Plans on business and human rights; a new automobile industry initiative to address the social and environmental risks associated with raw materials sourcing; and a report from the NYU Stern Center for Business and Human Rights on the efforts of internet platform companies to address content that incites terrorism or that represents politically motivated disinformation.… More

It’s Friday and time for another overview of developments in the field of business and human rights that we’ve been monitoring.

This week’s post includes: a look ahead at the upcoming UN Forum on Business and Human Rights; a decision in the Nevsun case by the British Columbia Court of Appeal; and the first decision by a NCP to hear a complaint focused on the impacts of climate change.… More

In Washington, D.C., the news this week focused on President Trump’s decision to designate (or redesignate) North Korea as a state sponsor of terrorism. For companies importing goods into the United States, developments this past August are likely to have more immediate impact.

On August 2, the United States enacted amendments to the North Korea Sanctions and Policy Enhancement Act of 2016. The amendments create a presumption that goods made by North Korean citizens or nationals,… More

It’s Friday and time for another overview of developments in the field of business and human rights that we’ve been monitoring.

This week’s post includes: the formal withdrawal of the United States from the EITI; the passage of the Canadian Magnitsky Act; and the launch of the Investor Alliance for Human Rights.

• On November 2, the Government of the United States formally withdrew from the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (“EITI”).…

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The Open-Ended Intergovernmental Working Group that is considering an international treaty on business and human rights held its third session from October 23-27 in Geneva. A draft report of the session is available here.

The mandate of the Working Group, as set forth by the U.N. Human Rights Council in 2014, is “to elaborate an international legally binding instrument to regulate, in international human rights law,… More

It’s Friday and time for another overview of developments in the field of business and human rights that we’ve been monitoring.

This week’s post includes: a paper from on the proposed draft elements for an international treaty on business and human rights; new guidance from the United Kingdom with regard to compliance with the Modern Slavery Act; and a review of corporate responsibility reporting.

• On September 29,…

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On Wednesday, October 11, the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments in Jesner v. Arab Bank. The case may once and for all determine whether companies are appropriate defendants in cases filed pursuant to the Alien Tort Statute (“ATS”).

In granting plaintiffs’ petition for a writ of certiorari, the Supreme Court agreed to review the following question:

This case presents the question this Court granted certiorari to resolve,… More

On September 26, the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights released new Standards of Conduct intended to support the business community in tackling discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and intersex (“LGBTI”) people. The full report released by the High Commission includes the Standards, background materials, and corporate case studies.

The U.N. Human Rights Office has observed that the Standards are intended to provide both operational guidance for companies and a benchmark against which corporate efforts can be evaluated.… More