3CL Seminar: '“Mind the gap”: The Gap Between ESG and Reality and the Importance of Human Rights Due Diligence in Closing this Gap'

Speaker: Robin Brooks (Partner, Norton Rose Fulbright)

The talk will set the context of the current focus on ESG (“E”, “S” and “G” and the EU taxonomy) and introduce the basic and somewhat fundamental standards of behaviour required by the United Nation Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights including the requirement for all businesses to perform due diligence so as to understand their impact on the rights of others. This will include the concepts of “respect” and “remedy”.

International business is required to obey the “law” and the talk will describe what this can mean in the context of a relatively global group or transaction. This is the context against which the UNGPs are taking effect. To illustrate the significance of human rights due diligence the talk will look at the concept of “due diligence” as applied in an M&A transaction and look at how the requirement for Human Rights Due Diligence differs from traditional due diligence as practiced in M&A but also by reference to other areas. It will comment on the concept of “materiality” and the slight difference between commercial and regulatory due diligence by reference to ABC due diligence. In doing do it will also in passing explore the role and responsibility of a lawyer on a transaction. It will look at a recent example of a complaint on an M&A sale which has been referred in July 2021 to the Norwegian national contact point.

The seminar will conclude by looking at the developing legislative position and in particular the anticipated EU directive on mandatory human rights due diligence.

Robin Brooks is a corporate finance lawyer with nearly 40 years experience of M&A and corporate transactions with a strong focus on developing and emerging markets. A significant proportion of Robin’s work has been advising boards on governance and ethical issues including on investigations and their consequences. He was an early specialist in human rights due diligence and impact assessments for business. He retired as a partner in 2018and remains a consultant. He has spent many years supporting NGOs specialising in human rights.

This person will be live in G24.

You can view a reading list and slides to prepare.

3CL runs the 3CL Travers Smith Lunchtime Seminar Series, featuring leading academics from the Faculty, and high-profile practitioners.

Enquiries to: 3cl@law.cam.ac.uk