Business and Human Rights Law
Business and human rights regulatory compliance and litigation risks are becoming core concerns for many businesses wherever they operate. Our team helps clients navigate increasingly complex and sometimes competing legal requirements in this area.
One of the few specialist business and human rights (BHR) practices in the world, with nearly two decades of experience, our team supports clients throughout all stages of their businesses. We work with our clients as partners, investing time to understand your business objectives and needs and finding solutions to enable you to meet your responsibilities to respect human rights and aspirations to make a positive social impact.
We advise on regulatory and litigation risks, as well as implementation of the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights and other social performance standards. Key aspects of our practice include:
- designing human rights policies and compliance systems to respond to the evolving expectations of stakeholders, investors, business partners, courts and regulators
- advising on effective governance practices, corporate culture and management structures
- setting appropriate human rights performance targets, developing performance monitoring systems and assisting with corporate reporting and communications
- representing clients in civil, criminal and administrative proceedings before State courts
- proceedings before the OECD National Contact Points; as well as in international commercial and investor-State arbitrations raising BHR issues
- advising on human rights-related internal and external investigations, the management of crises, engagement with governments and civil society and the defence of enforcement actions
- providing transactional support and assisting with human rights due diligence
- developing operational level grievance mechanisms and whistle-blowing procedures.
Our broad and extensive geographical reach, together with a network of specialist local firms, means we can provide comprehensive advice in any domestic jurisdiction, on both public and private international law.
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News and insights
Publications: 16 September 2022
The EC publishes a new proposal to keep the EU free from forced labour
On 14 September 2022, the European Commission (the EC) published a proposal for a regulation aiming to prohibit products made with forced labour on the European Union (the EU) market (2022/0269…
Publications: 12 September 2022
Allen & Overy publishes ninth edition of The Business and Human Rights Review
Allen & Overy’s Human Rights Working Group is pleased to announce the publication of the ninth edition of The Business and Human Rights Review.
Publications: 21 April 2022
Recent developments in European Business and Human Rights (BHR) Litigation
Key takeaways from our latest cross-border BHR litigation webinar Our European BHR litigation specialists recently hosted a cross-border webinar on the emerging BHR legal frameworks across Europe,…
Publications: 25 February 2022
The EU Commission's proposal for a directive on corporate sustainability due diligence
Paving the way to a sustainable business community in the EU.
Read our Business and Human rights articles
Recognition
A globally integrated firm with a significant human rights practice spanning litigation and compliance across several markets.
Chambers Global 2022, Business and Human Rights Law
A source commends the ‘breadth and depth’ of the team, in addition to the ‘strong leadership’ of its lawyers.
Chambers Global 2022, Business and Human Rights Law
Representative examples of our recent work
Policy design and compliance systems
Our experience includes advising:
- A European financial institution on implementing their human rights policy – advising on revisions to policies and procedures and reporting on provisions of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) which were not, or insufficiently, covered; and advising on specific human rights issues.
- A mining company on human rights impact assessments, the design and implementation of human rights compliance systems, as well as negotiating and revising its memoranda of understanding with State police forces in an African country.
Identifying risks and opportunities
Our experience includes advising:
- An international financial institution on immunities and emerging litigation risk regarding the environmental and social impacts of projects to which it lends or provides advisory services.
- A discount fashion brand regarding risks associated with suppliers in countries with a high incidence of modern slavery, unsafe working conditions and low wages.
- A tobacco company on litigation risk mitigation measures regarding its supply chain, including blockchain technology and perpetual clauses.
- Various corporates on supply chain risk management, including compliance with the UN Guiding Principles on BHR and human rights due diligence.
Governance and capacity building
Our experience includes advising:
- A leading financial institution in delivering a workshop to the IT legal team defining the implications of the firm’s human rights policy for that team, identifying key human rights risks for the team’s business and practical steps to implement the policy and remedy breaches.
- A FTSE 100 multinational with a complex food processing and retail supply chain, on developments in BHR-related regulation and transnational tort litigation, and risk mitigation measures regarding its suppliers and overseas operations.
Measuring, reporting and communicating
Our experience includes advising:
- Financial services and corporate clients on their obligations to report on human rights issues under the Modern Slavery Act, and related due diligence exercises in respect of their supply chains and their own business activities, and drafting their Modern Slavery Statements.
- A range of companies in relation to their non-financial reporting requirements under the UK Companies Act, particularly in relation to human rights, environmental and carbon emissions.
- Numerous industrial and energy clients on freedom of information requests, OECD National Contact Point complaints, and supply chain disclosure obligations, including conflict minerals and payments to Government by the extractive industries.
Dispute resolution
Our experience includes advising:
- A European oil major on threatened and actual transnational tort litigations and OECD National Contact Points claims.
- A natural resource company on defending BHR-related transnational tort claims in England, as well as stakeholder communications, corporate reporting and board meetings.
- A mining company regarding land acquisition and resettlement disputes in a South American country.
- An oil and gas major in an investment treaty arbitration concerning the company’s environmental and social impact and alleged local law violation.
- An African State in defending an investment treaty arbitration involving alleged human rights violations.
Grievance mechanisms
Our experience includes advising:
- A mining company listed in London and its subsidiary listed in an African country on designing its operational level grievance mechanisms, negotiating and revising its memoranda of understanding with the State police forces, and advising on security and human rights impact assessments and compliance systems.
- An international development finance institution on its complaints procedures and litigation risks with respect to its lending and investment activities.
Transactional Support
Our experience includes advising:
- An asset manager and consortium of pension funds on the acquisition of a renewable energy company in Colombia, and designing an action plan for human rights risk mitigation.
- Numerous financial institutions on major infrastructure and energy projects in Africa and Latin America, regarding the application of the Equator Principles, IFC Environmental and Social Performance Standards and UN Guiding Principles on BHR.
- Lenders to the sponsors of a African LNG project regarding arrangements with State security forces, and means to ensure compliance with the Voluntary Principles on Security and Human Rights.
Download the practice brochure
Allen & Overy’s Global Business & Human Rights Law Group integrates lawyers from across the firm to provide both transactional and stand alone advice, as well as dispute resolution services in all areas of BHR law at national, regional and international levels.