United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights and corporate law: the struggle for human rights integration

The article examines the evolution and impact of the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs), focusing on the pivotal role played by the Ruggie Process, spearheaded by Professor John Ruggie. It Highlights the significance of the Corporate Law Tools Project (CLTP), which analysed corporate and securities laws across thirty-nine jurisdictions to promote human rights. Despite extensive consultations and findings underscoring the potential of corporate law to address human rights issues,the UNGPs incorporate limited references to corporate law, reflecting a compromise to achieve broad consensus without imposing binding obligations on corporations. The article tries to highlight the possible reasons for the exclusion of comprehensive corporate law measures.