A Guide to Human Rights Due Diligence for Lawyers

"This book is intended to assist lawyers in navigating the developing area of human rights due diligence (HRDD). It explores the key components and requirements of the HRDD process, considers practical implementation of HRDD into corporate practices and policies, and treats key topics and cross-cutting issues related to HRDD. The 15 chapters in this book should therefore further lawyers' understanding of HRDD and allow them to advise their business clients in a manner that aids those clients with adoption and implementation of good practices to enhance their effectiveness in addressing their potential and actual human rights impacts"--

List of contents

Contents

About the Authors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . v

PART I

AN INTRODUCTION TO HUMAN
RIGHTS DUE DILIGENCE . . . . 1

Chapter 1  

The
Evolving Concept of Human Rights Due Diligence
. . . . . . . . 3

Corinne E . Lewis

Chapter 2  

The
Due Diligence Process
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

Hind
Merabet

Chapter 3

Lawyers’ Ethical Obligations and Human Rights Due Diligence
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47

Steven M . Richman

Chapter 4  

French Due Diligence Law . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77

François
de Cambiaire and Alice Murgier

Chapter 5

Human Rights Due Diligence Requirements
Outside the United
States . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111

Esmira
Hackenberg, Olivia Dean, and Shelley Marshall

 

PART II

APPROACHING HUMAN RIGHTS DUE DILIGENCE REQUIREMENTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139

A. A PRACTICAL APPROACH

Chapter 6  

Human
Rights Due Diligence and Corporate Governance . . . . 141

John F . Sherman
III

Chapter 7  

Integrating Human Rights Due Diligence into Compliance Approaches . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175

Anahita
Thoms

Chapter 8

Making
the Connection: Operational-Level Grievance Diligence . . . . 195

Lisa J . Laplante

Chapter 9  

Stakeholder Engagement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 219

Shauna
Curphey and Jared Cole

Chapter 10  

Gender-Responsive Human Rights Due
Diligence . . . . . . . . . . . 243

Constance Z . Wagner and Nancy Kaymar Stafford

Chapter 11 

Human Rights Due Diligence Practices for Adequate and
Effective Consultation with Indigenous Peoples
. . . . . . . . . 277

Thomas
Andrew O’Keefe

B. SPECIFIC CHALLENGES

Chapter 12 

The United Nations Guiding
Principles on Business
and Human Rights and Global Supply
Chains . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 299

Andrea
Shemberg and Bettina Braun

Chapter 13  

Leveraging the Financial Sector for
Human Rights . . . . . . . . . . 325

Margaret G . Wachenfeld

Chapter 14 

Environmental Law and Climate
Change . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 355

Carlos
de Miguel Perales and Austin Pierce

Chapter 15 

Due Diligence
in Conflict-Affected and High-Risk Areas . . . . . 381

Morvarid
Bagheri

Index   ...................................................................................  403

About the author

Constance Z. Wagner is Professor of Law and affiliated faculty with the Center for International and Comparative Law at Saint Louis University School of Law. She focuses her teaching and scholarship on business law and international law, including corporate governance, corporate social responsibility, financial regulation, international trade law, and international business transactions. She holds a secondary appointment as Professor of Women’s and Gender Studies. She has taught seminars on women’s human rights and has lectured at conferences and published articles on the gender dimensions of international trade treaties, gender mainstreaming, and gender equity. She serves as vice-chair (publications) of the International Human Rights Committee of the ABA Section of International Law. She practiced corporate law in New York City prior to entering the legal academy and is a member in good standing of the New York and Missouri bars. Professor Wagner holds degrees from Columbia University School of Law (JD), University of Konstanz School of Law (LLM), Saint Louis University School of Business (MBA), and Northwestern University College of Arts & Sciences (BA).Constance Z. Wagner lives in Saint Louis, MO.

Summary

Business clients are increasingly seeking their lawyers’ advice and assistance with human rights due diligence (HRDD). Their clients must navigate compliance with a growing array of legal  requirements and soft law standards defining the expectations of governments, investors, and  society that businesses respect human rights. Consequently, new opportunities are arising for lawyers to provide services and advice to businesses on HRDD.

This guide, intended for U.S. and foreign lawyers alike, is an indispensable resource on HRDD that should assist lawyers with understanding not only the fundamentals of HRDD but also crucial aspects of the process.


Part I of the book examines the essentials of HRDD, including the HRDD process, lawyers’ ethical obligations related to HRDD, and key due diligence legal requirements. In Part II, practical aspects of implementing HRDD are explored, including corporate governance, HRDD’s relationship to compliance approaches, use of grievance mechanisms, stakeholder engagement, gender-sensitive HRDD, and consultation with indigenous peoples.


In this rapidly developing area, lawyers also need to be aware of key developments that will affect how their business clients perform HRDD. Therefore, the final section, Part III, addresses four of those key areas: suppliers in value chains, the financial sector, the intersection of environmental law and climate change issues with HRDD, and high-risk security situations, such as those in countries that are politically unstable or undergoing conflict.


The goal of the expert contributions to this book is to further lawyers’ understanding and to facilitate their role in assisting businesses to respect human rights, which should, at the same time, foster businesses’ contribution to sustainable development and the social factor of ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance).

Product details

• Assisted by: Corinne Elizabeth Lewis (Editor), Constance Z. Wagner (Editor)
• Publisher: Ingram Publishers Services
• Languages: English
• Product format: Paperback / Softback
• Released: 04.12.2023
• EAN: 9781639052028
• ISBN: 978-1-63905-202-8
• No. of pages: 424
• Subjects: Social sciences, law, business > Law > International law, foreign law; LAW / Civil Rights, LAW / Discrimination