Corporate Due Diligence: A Contribution to the Enforcement of Human Rights?

The chapter discusses the meaning and political significance of the concept of ‘corporate due diligence’ in the field of human rights, which has been introduced by the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights. The author argues that the concrete obligations for companies and effective economic incentives for the comprehensive implementation of due diligence would have to be further specified in order to render this approach an effective instrument for transnational human rights protection. Otherwise, it might even increase transnational companies’ political authority in the field of human rights interpretation instead of strengthening human rights along the supply chain.