HUMAN RIGHTS LAW AND BUSINESS CERNIC J.L. Księgarnia

Over recent decades, globalisation has stirred up a number of positive and negative developments in national and international environments. An important feature of globalisation is the rise of the economic, social, cultural and political power of corporations. While corporate activities may positively contribute to the livelihoods of individuals, communities and societies, a number of allegations have been made that corporations have been involved in systematically violating human rights. In contrast, only a limited of number of claims have been successfully brought against corporations or their directors and employees. As there is an urgent need for practical and victim-oriented solutions in the modern world in the area of human rights and business, this study argues that corporations have normative obligations in relation to fundamental human rights, around which there possibly appears to exist a value consensus across different cultures and societies around the world. However, the cacophony of international documents so far agreed currently regulate the conduct of corporations in international law only indirectly.

This study therefore argues that the normative thrust of corporate human rights obligations derives primarily from national legal orders and only secondarily from the international level, whereas both draw their foundations from an international value system. Moreover, corporate human rights obligations may also derive from corporate unilateral commitments. The study argues that corporations should be held accountable for violations of human rights law.

Table of Contents

Foreword

Acknowledgements

Summary

Contents

Abbreviations

Part I Introduction

Chapter 1 Introduction

Introduction 5

1.1 Fundamental issues and terminology 9

1.1.1 Corporations 9

1.1.2 The nature of corporations 11

1.1.3 Corporate responsibility or corporate liability? 14

1.1.4 Fundamental human rights 16

1.2 Normative framework: 'respect, protect, fulfil' 17

1.3 The nature and extent of corporate human rights violations 18

1.4 The nature and scope of the study 21

Chapter 2 The Nature and Scope of the Concept of Corporate Responsibility for Fundamental Human Rights

2.1 Introductory observations 25

2.1.1 Changes in the international environment 26

2.2 Conceptual framework for corporate responsibility for fundamental human rights 28

2.3 A national and international value system 31

2.4 Corporate human rights obligations: From their sources to their legal nature and scope 33

2.5 Legal sources of corporate human rights obligations 33

2.5.1 Sources of corporate human rights obligations in national legal orders 33

2.5.2 Sources of corporate human rights obligations at the international level 39

2.5.3 Voluntary recognition of corporate human rights obligations 43

2.5.4 Interim conclusion 47

2.6 The horizontal application of human rights law 48

2.7 The nature and the scope of corporate human rights obligations 52

2.7.1 The corporate obligation to respect 54

2.7.2 The corporate obligation to protect 56

2.7.3 The Corporate obligation to fulfil 58

2.8 Which fundamental human rights are corporations asked to observe? 59

2.8.1 Fundamental human rights preserving the security of persons 61

2.8.2 Fundamental human rights preserving fundamental labour rights 64

2.8.3 Fundamental human rights preserving non-discrimination 68

2.9 The spectrum of corporate responsibility for fundamental human rights 72

2.9.1 Corporate spheres of responsibility 73

2.9.2 Levels of corporate responsibility 75

2.9.3 Causation 78

2.9.4 Corporate complicity 79

2.10 From responsibility to accountability: implementation and enforcement 83

2.11 Conclusion 87

Part II Examination of Current Normative Framework

Chapter 3 Corporations and State Responsibility

3.1 Introduction 93

3.2 Substantive human rights obligations of states 94

3.2.1 The tripartite obligations of states to respect, protect and fulfil fundamental human rights relating to corporate activities 95

3.2.2 Reference to corporate actors in relation to fundamental human rights 97

3.2.3 The state obligation to protect 100

3.2.4 Towards a collective responsibility to protect fundamental human rights of the individual? 105

3.2.5 Interim conclusion 107

3.3 Home state responsibility --- rules of attribution 108

3.3.1 State responsibility for the extraterritorial acts of corporations 108

3.3.2 Private conduct that is state conduct: a question of attribution 113

3.3.2.1 Attribution de iure: the exercise of governmental authority 113

3.3.2.2 Attribution de facto --- corporations acting under the control, directions and instructions of the state 116

3.3.3 Due diligence 119

3.4 Summary and conclusion 122

Chapter 4 National and International Responses to Corporate Criminal Responsibility for Fundamental Human Rights

4.1 Corporate criminal liability for fundamental human rights 127

4.2 Corporations and criminal liability in general 129

4.2.1 Corporate criminal liability in national legal orders 129

4.2.2 Corporate criminal liability as provided in international documents 130

4.3 Corporate criminal liability for international crimes 132

4.4 Attribution of responsibility 136

4.5 Corporations and the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court 141

4.5.1 The Rome Statute of an International Criminal Court de lege lata 141

4.5.2 Travaux preparatoires of the Rome Statute 142

4.5.3 Rome ICC Statute de lege ferenda 146

4.5.4 Interim conclusion 147

4.6 Individual criminal responsibility --- Possibilities of prosecution of agents of corporations 148

4.6.1 National legal orders --- Public Prosecutor v. Van Anraat 149

4.7 Concurence of corporate and individual criminal responsibility 150

4.8 Conclusion 152

Chapter 5 Corporate Civil Responsibility for Fundamental Human Rights

5.1 Introduction 157

5.2 Corporate civil responsibility for fundamental human rights 158

5.3 Human Rights litigation in the United States under the Aliens Torts Claims Act 161

5.3.1 Introduction 161

5.3.2 Development of the ATCA 162

5.3.3 Corporations and the Aliens Torts Claims Act 164

5.3.3.1 Subject matter and personal jurisdiction of the U.S. federal courts 166

5.3.3.2 Norms, the violation of which gives rise to the tortious liability of corporations and other non-state actors 167

5.3.4 When does corporate tortious liability under the ATCA arise? 169

5.3.4.1 Corporate complicity under the ATCA 170

5.3.5 Criteria for corporate complicity in the absence of a state action requirement 172

5.3.5.1 Interim conclusions re U.S. case law relating to complicity 176

5.3.6 Corporate conspiracy in international torts 177

5.4 Conclusion 179

Chapter 6 A Critical Examination of Emerging International Quasi-Judicial Legal Regimes for Corporate Responsibility for Fundamental Human Rights

6.1 Introduction 183

6.2 The OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises 184

6.2.1 Nature and scope of the guidelines 184

6.2.2 Content of the Guidelines 186

6.2.3 The OECD Guidelines' Implementation Procedure 189

6.2.4 The procedure of National Contact Points 190

6.2.5 Case law of the National Contact Points 193

6.2.6 Global Witness v Afrimex Ltd.: Decision Applying OECD Guidelines on Corporate Responsibility for Human Rights 199

6.2.7 Shortcomings and merits of the OECD Guidelines 202

6.2.7.1 Shortcomings 202

6.2.7.2 Merits 203

6.2.8 Proposals 204

6.2.9 Interim conclusion 206

6.3 The Tripartite Declaration of Principles Concerning Multinational Enterprises and Fundamental Human Rights 207

6.3.1 Contents of the Tripartite Declaration 208

6.3.2 Implementing the Tripartite Declaration 210

6.3.2.1 Subcommittee on Multinational Enterprises 210

6.3.3 Interpretation procedure of the Tripartite Declaration 212

6.3.4 Critical assessment of ILO Declaration of Principles on Multinational Enterprises 215

6.4 Conclusion 216

Chapter 7 United Nations and Corporate Responsibility for Human Rights

7.1 Attempts to regulate corporate behaviour within the United Nations framework 221

7.2 The UN Norms on Human Rights Responsibilities of Corporations 221

7.3 Implementation of the UN Norms 224

7.4 The work of the UN Special Representative on business and human rights 226

7.5 Global Compact 228

7.6 Conclusion 230

Chapter 8 Corporate Responsibility and Investment Law

8.1 Introduction 233

8.2 Stabilization clauses and the fundamental human rights obligations of corporations 234

8.2.1 Application of stabilization clauses --- MDA Agreement 237

8.2.2 The Application of the stabilization clauses---The Baku-Tblisi-Ceyhan (BTC) Pipeline Project 239

8.3 Right to effective remedy for the victims 243

8.4 Integrating fundamental human rights obligations of corporate investors in foreign investment agreements 245

8.5 Conclusion 247

Part III De Lege Ferenda Framework for Corporate Responsibility for Fundamental Human Rights

Chapter 9 Towards a Normative Framework de Lege Ferenda for Human Rights Law and Business

9.1 Introduction 253

9.2 Why normative framework de lege ferenda? 253

9.3 Concept of corporate responsibility for fundamental human rights in de lege ferenda normative framework 254

9.4 Human Rights Impact Assessment 259

9.5 Human rights law and business---a holistic approach 262

9.6 From responsibility to accountability de lege ferenda: access to justice 264

9.7 Summary of recommendations 268

9.8 Conclusion 269

Chapter 10 Summary and Conclusion

Selected Bibliography 280

Table of Cases 308

Table of Treaties and Legislation 318

Index 326

346 pages, Paperback

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