International commercial courts have much to learn from international criminal tribunals (ICTs), as these were the first (along with investment tribunals) to combine domestic and international law, in a manner that today exemplifies the interplay of transnational law. Although ICTs dispensed criminal justice, their hybrid commercial counterparts of the twenty-first century do not depart from the ICT model of justice. There are striking similarities in that both wish to attract users and ultimately become financially independent; they both strive to convince their financiers that they are worth the effort and expense. Ultimately, and although this may not be apparent from the outset (and may not perhaps even be an indirect goal), both ICTs and hybrid commercial tribunals will have to show that they are truly legitimate and that they feed into the local legal system in a meaningful way. If they do not, they will have failed to meet the concerns and aspirations of all users of the pertinent legal system.

This chapter is organized under two main sections. The first discusses how the content requirements of HRIAs are conflated with the ethical requirements of the assessment itself. This, narrow and inadequate species of HRIA ethics is quite different from the extensive body of legal ethics. The second section provides a case study of a World Bank-related impact assessment, which gives rise to legal and non-legal ethical issues and which is meant to demonstrate that the absence of concrete human rights-centred ethical guidelines in HRIAs can, even with the best of intentions, lead to outcomes that effectively violate fundamental rights.

This chapter examines the emergence of a treaty regime at the UN on business and human rights. It examines the key provisions of the Zero Draft as well as the amendments addressed by the draft presented in August 2020. This is a welcome development and it is clear that the focus of the emerging treaty is not so much on the corporations themselves but on the necessary positive measures required of states in this field

This chapter starts from the premise that business and human rights is much more complex than the impact of corporate practices on the fulfillment of human rights and environmental law. Rather, it is crucial that one identifies the underlying causes of this tension, namely: a) the broader corporate perspective in its transnational context; b) the inter-state investment relations and; c) the international financial architecture. Within all three of these, home and host states interact with each other, as well as with corporations. Powerful home states are lobbied by multinational corporations (MNCs) to create an international framework that better guarantees investment and trade. This is taken up as a policy imperative and reflected in international treaty making. States, both home and host, are clearly central to this process and their achievements, good or bad, will ultimately shape, or open up the space for subsequent corporate conduct. Hence, the starting point for our understanding of business and human rights should not be based on corporations themselves, but rather extend to all the contextual and underlying grounds that shape their existence, regulation and performance.

A comprehensive discussion of the UN’s human rights work and institutions is an infinite task given that every atom of the Organisation is engaged in one way or another in the promotion or protection of rights. As a result, a large part of this chapter is devoted to the examination of the principal human rights institution, the Human Rights Council (HRC), and the various mechanisms operating under its wing. This includes a discussion of the universal periodic review (UPR), the HRC’s complaint procedure, as well as its so-called special procedures. The chapter then goes on to analyse the important human rights dimension of the UN General Assembly (UNGA) and the UNSC, since both possess authority to take direct action against violations, in addition to their standard-setting capacity. Institutions that have produced important human rights work, but whose mandate is otherwise peripheral to human rights, such as the International Court of Justice (ICJ), are mentioned in this chapter but are not extensively analysed. Equally, space precludes us from examining specialised agencies such as UN International Children’s (Emergency) Fund (UNICEF) and the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).

International human rights law is part of public international law and shares a number of its features, including sources, obligations (primary rules) and state responsibility (secondary rules). While international human rights law has formed within the broader setting of international law, it has developed distinctive features. Traditional international law was an order based on the sovereign interests of states as its sole subjects. In contrast, international human rights law is characterised by its emphasis on common interests that reflect the fundamental values of the international legal order. This value-based approach is evident in the concept of jus cogens, or peremptory norm, and the notion of erga omnes, obligations owed to the international community as a whole. Undoubtedly, international human rights law can form an important component of a new international order or international constitutionalism. However, unilateralism, selectivity and fragmentation, in addition to challenges of effective implementation, are restraining factors that may slow down, if not undermine, ‘constitutional’ developments at the international level. This chapter examines these dynamics and discusses the key building blocks of international (human rights) law: its sources; its rights and obligations and the scope of their application; and its implementation as well as state responsibility and enforcement.