June 23, 2010: New Publications: Access to Justice: Human Rights Abuses Involving Corporations - South Africa, Poland and Colombia

 New Publication: Access to Justice: Human Rights Abuses Involving Corporations - South Africa

International Commission of Jurists | June 2010

Access to legal remedies and justice has become a crucial element in today's work protecting human rights in the context of business activities. It is also an area of primary importance for judges and lawyers who work promoting the rule of law and human rights. The South African legal system has considerable potential to ground liability and provide remedies for a wide range of possible violations of victims' rights. There is room for considerable development and re-interpretation. This potential is not wholly realised in practice. The key constraint is the very limited access to legal resources that victims have. The key factors affecting the extent to which the potential of the system is realised depend on responses to this constraint. The most notable factors are the interpretative approach of the courts, the current lack of clarity in certain substantive areas of the law, the extent to which victims are connected to competent representatives, and the extent to which a speedy and cheap remedial mechanism is available.

Download the full report here: Access to Justice: Human Rights Abuses Involving Corporations - South Africa

New Publication: Access to Justice: Human Rights Abuses Involving Corporations - Poland

International Commission of Jurists | June 2010

Access to legal remedies and justice has become a crucial element in today's work protecting human rights in the context of business activities. It is also an area of primary importance for judges and lawyers who work promoting the rule of law and human rights. This study assesses the extent to which Polish law provides victims of human rights abuses involving corporate entities with remedies. Criminal prosecution and civil remedies are important legal tools that can be used to redress human rights violations committed by companies. At the same time, there are numerous legal and practical obstacles, which can render the process of pursuing justice difficult and/or ineffective. Disputes between individuals and/or groups and corporations share common barriers regarding access to justice. The realisation of the procedural principle of "equality of arms" is one such example: the frequent disparity of arms is aggravated when the victim (claimant) lacks high-quality legal advice and has limited resources, both in regards to time and money, whilst the defendant is a powerful corporate entity.

Download here: Access to Justice: Human Rights Abuses Involving Corporations - Poland

New Publication: Access to Justice: Human Rights Abuses Involving Corporations - Colombia 

Download here the Spanish publication: Acceso a la Justicia: En casos de Abusos de Derechos Humanos por Parte de Empresas - Colombia