ESG and sustainability

Human rights and supply chain 

With rapid change in the legal landscape surrounding human rights and supply chains, global businesses need to evaluate their performance as a key legal and strategic concern.

As scrutiny on the way supply chains are managed increases, these issues are no longer solely the domain of the legal team. From executives embedding human rights considerations into their business strategy, to finance directors facing greater scrutiny on ESG indicators, operational and procurement teams must now consider how to adapt their approach to reflect new forms of risk.
Freshfields advises across the full sphere of legislative obligations, regulatory compliance and civil litigation, providing clients with strategies to avoid business disruption and loss of opportunity, reputational damage, increased costs and ultimately litigation. Having a global advisor has never been more important, as claims are increasingly brought against parent companies for infringements linked to overseas subsidiaries and global supply chains. Obligations must be carefully considered in each jurisdiction to understand what is relevant amid the multiplicity of standards.

Our human rights legal and compliance strategies are as vigorous as our anti-bribery and corruption investigations and go further than compliance. Having participated in the research that led to the development of the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, our dedicated global business and human rights practice are best placed to advise our clients on the issues that flow from them. The principles are widely used by organisations to scope and address human rights issues that help them assess and mitigate risk in a proportionate and iterative fashion, which in turn protects their reputation and preserves corporate value.

Client successes

Advising a global telecoms company on human rights policies and the requirements of international business and human rights standards (including the UN Guiding Principles), as well as local law and safeguarding considerations.

Advising a major oil and gas consortium on its responses to a complaint to the UK, US and Italian OECD NCPs by NGOs alleging violations of environmental and human rights provisions of the OECD’s Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises, incorporating the Ruggie Principles.

Advising an international professional services company on the development of best practices in content moderation to ensure respect for human rights, based on the United Nations Guiding Principles and the human rights risks associated with the provision of client services in certain contexts and jurisdictions.

Advising on the design and drafting of, and providing training on, human rights policies for various major financial institutions to balance the requirements of human rights law and business law, including in relation to whistleblowing, data protection and use of social media.