Internal investigations in high-risk areas: constraints and strategies for effective inquiry
L'enquête interne constitue un levier essentiel pour identifier et remédier aux cas de non-conformité et d’infractions dans un environnement organisationnel. Qu’elle soit conduite par l’entreprise ou par des conseils externes, lorsqu'elle est menée en zone à risque, en raison d’un conflit armé ou d’une instabilité politique, elle se heurte à des contraintes majeures qui compromettent à la fois la qualité des investigations et la sécurité des acteurs de l’enquête. Une méthodologie rigoureuse et adaptée aux spécificités de ces environnements est donc essentielle.
NATO's critical raw materials list: legal and strategic stakes for the defence industry
The escalating rivalry between China and the United States has placed rare minerals at the center of geopolitical tensions, challenging supply chain stability for industries worldwide. This article explores why these critical materials are indispensable to advanced defense technologies and how French defense companies can mitigate risks associated with China’s market dominance through strategic innovation and collaboration.
Managing legal risks in complex environments: lessons from the tensions between Barrick Gold and Mali
Discover how businesses can navigate the complexities of operating in politically unstable environments. Using the recent tensions between Barrick Gold and Mali as a backdrop, this article explores strategies for managing legal risks, strengthening compliance, and preserving operational continuity in high-pressure contexts. Learn how proactive planning and integrated legal approaches can safeguard investments and ensure long-term resilience.
The legal review of weapons: what defense companies need to know
International humanitarian law requires states to ensure that the use of "a new weapon, means or method of warfare" is authorised. To comply with this obligation, when new weapons are studied with a view to equipping their armed forces, they must undergo a legality review. Companies designing equipment for the armed forces must include this review at the research and development stage.
The UN’s Guide to Heightened Human Rights Due Diligence: business and human rights in conflict-affected areas
The United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights have become a reference framework for companies wishing and needing to take human rights and their impact on human rights into account.
Based on the premise that there is a high risk of " companies becoming involved in grave human rights abuses […] in contexts affected by armed conflicts and other situations of widespread violence ", the United Nations Development Programme and the Working Group on Business and Human Rights drafted a Guide to Heightened Human Rights Due Diligence for Business in Conflict-Affected Contexts in 2022.
This Guide, whose objective is "avoiding or mitigating negative impact [on human rights] that a business can cause, contribute to, or be directly linked to", could be a companion for companies operating in sensitive contexts.
Defence SMEs: 9 considerations to initiate a compliance programme
Companies that design military equipment and dual-use goods and technologies shoulder significant responsibilities. To prevent the risk of corruption, that of using goods and technologies to commit serious violations, or of harming national interests, vigilance is required on many fronts. While major groups have dedicated teams and are often in the vanguard when it comes to compliance, the defence industry also consists of many SMEs and start-ups, for whom the subject may seem daunting. The aim of this guide is to help them with their initial thoughts on the subject.
Critical minerals in conflict zones: managing the risk to face the demand
The energy and digital transitions are creating an unprecedented need for critical metals and minerals. Electric vehicles, wind turbines and batteries are just some of the goods for which they are essential to manufacture and use. While mining projects are being developed in France and Europe, geological resources mean that supplies have to be sourced abroad, including in areas where governance is sometimes unstable. For manufacturers and investors alike, getting involved in the extraction of critical metals and minerals means taking into account the risks associated with operations in armed conflict zones.
Military equipment trade: export licences in criminal defence
As the movement to hold corporations to account for their participation in human rights violations grows, one sector in particular is at risk: the defence industry. Under the impulse of human rights organisations, several investigations and prosecutions are already ongoing to identify the role played by corporations and their executives in the war crimes and crimes against humanity allegedly perpetrated with equipment they sold to state and non-state actors. A number of factors explain the lack of readiness amongst legal departments facing such challenges. The main one seems, however, to reside in the overconfidence provided by the export licences delivered by their state. Corporations assume, mistakenly, that the licence to export awarded by the state shields them and their executives from criminal accountability.
Legal challenges for the defence industry: a long term vision
A legal risk is arising for the defence industry: that of prosecutions against the company and its executives on the charges of complicity for international crimes. While the accountability of corporations for their role in war crimes and crimes against humanity was already addressed during the Second World War, with, for instance, the prosecution of Krupp during the Nuremberg Trial, it had somewhat been relinquished, becoming a substantial matter again only over the past twenty years. Increasingly, indeed, scholars have reflected on the responsibility arms manufacturers bear in the perpetration of war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide, when these violations are perpetrated with the weapons they have sold to the alleged perpetrators. So have practitioners.
Accountability for civilians participating in cyber operations
Increasingly, states partner with non-state actors to ensure the defense of their interests in the cyber space. Understanding the status of those actors, who may be called to perform cyber operations against foreign state actors, proves arduous. Such entities play a significant role in the defense of the interests of the states, and in the case a conflict arises, they might be included in the defense of the interest of the state. In case of an international armed conflict, some of the companies participating in this type of coordination initiative and their employees may therefore participate in operations contributing to an armed conflict.
9 steps for boards to improve compliance in the face of armed conflict
9 steps for boards to improve compliance in the face of armed conflict
Companies have recently been facing increasing scrutiny as a result of their operations in armed conflict zones. It now appears essential to account for this nascent risk with robust solutions. We outline nine steps that may contribute to improving a company’s compliance with domestic and international laws of armed conflict.