A Human Rights Approach to Due Diligence: Reflections on key principles

HRDD is a key means by which businesses uphold their responsibilities. HRDD is an ongoing process, which entails, among other things, commitment to a human rights norms or standards, assessing actual and potential human rights impacts against that norm, integrating and acting upon the findings, tracking results and communicating how impacts are addressed [1]
 United Nations, ‘Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights: Implementing the United Nations “Protect, Respect and Remedy” framework’, 2012, UNGP 17 and its commentary.
The UNGPs are a soft law instrument, and do not create legally binding obligations.
. It requires meaningful consultation with stakeholders such as employees, affected communities, supply chain workers or human rights defenders. Moreover, HRDD applies a risk-based approach while recognising that risks to human rights change over time as company’s activities and operating context evolve [2]
 See UNGP 17 and its commentary.
. This entails prioritising the most serious risks and impacts [3]
 See UNGP 24 and its commentary.
 and adapting due diligence to the specific risks that businesses face [4]
 OECD, ‘Translating a risk-based due diligence approach into law: Background note on regulatory developments concerning due diligence for responsible business conduct’, 2022.
.

Mandatory HRDD measures are essential to bridge the normative aspirations of voluntary international frameworks with enforceable legal obligations. They place sustainability and human rights obligations at the heart of businesses strategy, not merely to advance effective risk management, but to uphold substantive obligations through regulatory oversight and civil liability.

A number of legislative frameworks have been developed to oblige or incentivise companies to conduct HRDD, including in the EU. Adopting a human-rights-based approach, this paper focuses on the foundational elements stemming from international frameworks (UNGPs, OECD Guidelines) that are judged to be central to mandatory HRDD and without which it cannot be effective. They build on recommendations [5] United Nations, ‘EU Mandatory Human Rights Due Diligence Directive:


Recommendations to the European Commission’, 2021.
of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) issued in 2021, which outlines crucial considerations for robust HRDD legislation aligned with the UNGPs [6]
 United Nations, ‘Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights: Implementing the United Nations “Protect, Respect and Remedy” framework’, 2012.
. These recommendations include ensuring a risk-based approach and scope of due diligence encompassing the entire value chain. They recall thatthe structure, sequencing and logic of HRDD should be in line with the UNGPs. They recommend proactive and meaningful stakeholder engagement and the use of leverage to prevent and mitigate adverse impacts. They note that such legislation should include corporate accountability and legal liability along with effective regulation of non-State-based grievance mechanisms. In this context, CSDDD represents a historic advance in terms of human rights protection, with the EU in a global leadership role promulgating law. In this it recalls that the CSDDD,is grounded in and advances goals relating to the functioning of the internal market and goals relating to the protection of human rights.

This paper, based on desk research of the business and human rights framework, is primarily focusing on the UNGPs and OCED’s Guidelines with some examples of applying mandatory HRDD legislation in countries such as France and Germany. It presents initial reflections from FRA’s wider project started in 2024, which analyses the legal and policy frameworks governing corporate sustainability in the EU, selected EU Member States and FRA observer countries. A comparative analysis of this empirical data will be published in 2026.

This focus paper discusses a human-rights-based approach to due diligence, reflecting on key elements emanating from international standards of the mandatory corporate due diligence that addresses both human rights and environmental risks (although the term ‘HRDD’ is used throughout). It recalls principial elements of risk-based approach and normative standards Member States should introduce to enforce corporate responsibility. It will discuss these points in following sections:

1. why mandatory HRDD is needed,
2. a risk-based approach within HRDD,
3. stakeholders engagement,
4. access to effective remedies and civil liability, and
5. oversight and enforcement mechanisms.

While the analysis set forth in this paper will focus on human rights risks and impacts, this paper also considers both normative and market rationales driving the policy developments. It does not, however, discuss any specific legislative proposals. It is addressed to EU institutions, policymakers in Member States and other stakeholders who are concerned with responsible business conduct. While raising awareness of necessity and added-value of holding companies accountable for their adverse impacts on people and environment, it advocates for a “smart-mix” of soft and hard measures anchored in a risk-based approach.