Editor’s
note: Shamistha Selvaratnam is a LLM Candidate of the Advanced Masters of
European and International Human Rights Law at Leiden University in the
Netherlands and a contributor to the Doing Business Right project at the Asser Institute. Prior to commencing the LLM, she worked as a business and human
rights solicitor in Australia where she specialised in promoting business
respect for human rights through engagement with policy, law and practice.
Introduction
This report compiles all relevant news,
events and materials on Doing Business Right based on the coverage provided on
our twitter feed @DoinBizRight and on various websites. You are invited to
contribute to this compilation via the comments section below, feel free to add
links to important cases, documents and articles we may have overlooked.
The
Headlines
US
Supreme Court decision: World Bank can be sued for projects that impact on
local communities
In late February, the US Supreme Court handed
down its judgment in Jam et al. v. International Finance Corporation, ruling that the World Bank does not enjoy
absolute immunity from being sued in the United States, including in relation
to its commercial activities. In this case, members of a minority fishing
community in India sued the International Finance Corporate (IFC) (an arm of
the World Bank) in order to hold it accountable for various harms caused by the
Tata Mundra power plan, an IFC-financed project. The federal district court
found that the IFC enjoys ‘virtually absolute’ immunity from suits. The US
Court of Appeals upheld this decision. However, the US Supreme Court overturned
this decision finding that international organisations can now be sued in the
United States. Read the judgment here.
The Asser Institute will be holding an event on 24 April 2019 which will summarise
the reasoning in the decision and explore the foreseeable effects on the legal
accountability of international organisations, and international financial institutions
in particular. Register for the event here.
Australian
Government releases draft guidance in relation to modern slavery
The Australian Government has published its
draft guidance for reporting entities under the Modern Slavery Act 2018 (Cth), which was passed by Parliament in
December 2018. The draft sets out what entities need to do to comply with the
reporting requirement under the Act. Usefully, the draft informs entities on
how to determine whether it is a reporting entity and how to prepare a modern
slavery statement. It offers suggestions on how to meet the seven reporting
criteria, including how to scope out an entity’s modern slavery risks and
possible actions that can be taken to assess and address risks identified. Read
the draft here. More...
On 27 February 2019, in a 7-1
decision, the US Supreme Court made an end to the absolute immunity from
suit that international organisations (IOs) had consistently enjoyed in
US courts. The decision realigns the immunity regime for IOs with that
for foreign states, which leaves the opportunity to sue organisations
such as the International Finance Corporation (IFC) when they engage in
commercial activities. In a flare of enthusiasm among academics and
(human rights) activists, the decision was immediately granted a
landmark status and marked as a turning point in the long history of
impunity for social, ecological and human harm caused by the activities
of IOs. This Doing Business Right Talk will
summarise the reasoning in the decision and explore the foreseeable
effects on the legal accountability of IOs, and international financial
institutions in particular. The most immediate effect, in that sense,
might not be located on the avenue of adjudication, but in the various
accountability mechanisms that have been created within IOs themselves.
Dimitri van den Meerssche
is a researcher in the Dispute Settlement and Adjudication strand at
the T.M.C. Asser Instituut. His research reflects on the law of
international organisations, international legal practices and
technologies of global governance. This work is inspired by insights
from science and technology studies, performativity theory and
actor-network theory. Dimitri is currently finalising his doctoral
dissertation at the European University Institute, which he expects to
defend in winter 2019. His dissertation is entitled “The World Bank’s
Lawyers – An Inquiry into the Life of Law as Institutional Practice”. In
the context of this dissertation, Dimitri has worked for three months
at the World Bank Legal Vice-Presidency and spent one semester as
visiting doctoral researcher at the London School of Economics.
When: Wednesday 24 April 2019 at 16:00
Where: Asser Institute in The Hague
Register Here