This course focuses on the impact on human rights of business activities, particularly those of transnational corporations, and accountability mechanisms for those impacts in international and domestic law.

It is widely recognised that businesses cannot ignore the impacts of their conduct on the human rights of their workers, suppliers, customers and communities in which they operate. At the same time, many companies recognise the strategic value to their business, as well as to society, in enhancing respect for human rights.

To address these important matters, the field of Business and Human Rights is becoming increasingly popular in scholarly, activist and business circles. This is especially so since the unanimous adoption of the UN 'Protect, Respect, Remedy' Framework and its associated Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights. A growing body of hard and soft law, both international and domestic, is clarifying the scope and content of corporate human rights obligations. This course will focus on some of the most critical legal and practical issues surrounding efforts to advance corporate responsibility for human rights and accountability for abuses they contribute to.