A CHANCE AT A SUSTAINABLE FUTURE STRENGTHENING THE EU’S NEW LAW

Global Witness argues that the EU's proposed Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive risks becoming a 'box-ticking exercise' unless it is strengthened. The briefing recommends establishing a clear 'duty to prevent' harm, mandating ongoing and outcome-oriented due diligence, and ensuring meaningful stakeholder engagement, particularly for human rights and environmental defenders. It calls for the inclusion of mandatory climate due diligence aligned with the Paris Agreement, the removal of exemptions for financial institutions, and the reduction of legal barriers to justice for victims of corporate abuse.

• The current draft Directive risks becoming a bureaucratic 'box-ticking exercise' because it fails to align with international standards, such as the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs) and OECD Guidelines, and does not define due diligence as a continuous, outcome-oriented process.
• Global Witness recommends that the EU introduce a formal 'duty to consult' and mandate safe, inclusive stakeholder engagement, specifically recognizing the heightened security risks faced by Human Rights Defenders (HRDs) and Land and Environmental Defenders (LEDs).
• The briefing argues for a clear 'duty to prevent' harm, asserting that conducting due diligence steps should not automatically absolve a company of liability if they could have reasonably taken further measures to avoid specific harms.
• The document identifies critical loopholes in the draft, specifically the use of 'established business relationships' which may allow companies to avoid due diligence for short-term or negligible relationships, and the over-reliance on third-party verification systems.
• The briefing calls for the integration of mandatory climate due diligence with 'Paris-aligned' objectives, requiring companies to assess GHG emissions across Scopes 1, 2, and 3 and prioritize absolute emission reductions over long-term net-zero targets.
• To ensure effective enforcement, Global Witness proposes reducing barriers to justice by shifting the burden of proof to companies once a prima facie case is made, removing limitation periods for redress, and allowing for collective redress.
• The briefing argues that financial institutions are unjustifiably exempted from comprehensive ongoing due diligence, as the current text only requires a one-time check prior to providing services and limits their responsibilities to large clients.
• The document recommends expanding the scope of the Directive to include 'adverse governance impacts,' specifically targeting corruption through the inclusion of the UN Convention Against Corruption and the OECD Anti-Bribery Convention.

APA

Global Witness (2022). A CHANCE AT A SUSTAINABLE FUTURE STRENGTHENING THE EU’S NEW LAW. https://globalwitness.org/documents/103/A_chance_at_a_sustainable_future_-_April_2022.pdf

Chicago

Global Witness. A CHANCE AT A SUSTAINABLE FUTURE STRENGTHENING THE EU’S NEW LAW. 2022. https://globalwitness.org/documents/103/A_chance_at_a_sustainable_future_-_April_2022.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Global Witness |title=A CHANCE AT A SUSTAINABLE FUTURE STRENGTHENING THE EU’S NEW LAW |date=April 2022 |url=https://globalwitness.org/documents/103/A_chance_at_a_sustainable_future_-_April_2022.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{globalwitness2022chance, author = {{Global Witness}}, title = {{A CHANCE AT A SUSTAINABLE FUTURE STRENGTHENING THE EU’S NEW LAW}}, institution = {Global Witness}, year = {2022}, month = apr, url = {https://globalwitness.org/documents/103/A_chance_at_a_sustainable_future_-_April_2022.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }