Human Rights in Transnational Business

This book investigates how human rights law can be applied to corporate entities. To date there have been insufficient international legal mechanisms to bring corporations to justice for their misconduct abroad. The book argues that rather than trying to solve the problem locally, an international approach to corporate human rights compliance needs to be sought to prevent future corporate human rights abuses.

Implementing effective and enforceable human rights compliance policies at corporate level allows businesses to prevent negative human rights impacts such as loss of revenue, high litigation costs and damage to reputation.

By considering human rights to be an inherent part of their business strategy, corporations will be well equipped to meet national and regional business and human rights standards, which will inevitably be implemented in the next few years.

This approach, in turn, also furthers the fundamental aim of international human rights law.

Offers a systematic overview of the problem of applying human rights law to business entities Analyzes why the Alien Tort Statute can no longer serve as a vehicle for corporate human rights violations. Discusses existing legal initiatives and their shortcomings with regard to business and human rights Proposes a new approach to corporate human rights compliance Combines business and human rights in a mutually beneficial fashion Promotes the development of business best practices with regard to human rights Develops new ideas for an international oversight system for corporate human rights compliance

Inhalt

1 Introduction.- 2 Nigeria, Shell and the Ogoni People.- 3 The Alien Tort Statute.- 4 Corporations and Human Rights.- 5 Targeting Corporate Human Rights Conduct from a Multinational Perspective.- 6 Business and Human Rights at the UN.- 7 Translating Human Rights into an Enforceable Business Compliance Strategy.- 8 Conclusion: The Future of Human Rights Compliance.