Human Rights Due Diligence and Access to Remedy - A comparative analysis of twenty-six due diligence laws and proposals

The rise of global value chains and increased outsourcing of production activities to different parts of the world have highlighted the need to better address human rights violations and provide victims of corporate human rights violations access to remedy. With the introduction of human rights due diligence legislations a new approach is introduced to address human rights violations by companies. Several studies have focused on the emergence, scope and reach of due diligence legislations. Little research has been done on what they provide in terms of access to remedy. This article analyses access to remedy provisions in 26 legislations that are effective and in-force, as well as proposals and initiatives at different stages of development. By identifying whether the remedy is introduced in a form of “restitution”, “compensation”, or “satisfaction”, either singly or in combination, the paper discusses if the envisioned measures could potentially provide an effective remedy to the victims of human rights violations. The paper shows that there is significant variation between the different due diligence legislations in terms of access to remedy.