We organised a breakfast session this month on the expansion of the French duty of care and the resulting litigation risks for companies.
This is a hot topic:
- On 25 May 2023, BPCE, BNP Paribas and Crédit Agricole were given formal notice by NGOs to stop financing the Swiss company Glencore, which contributes to the fossil fuel industry.
- On 1er June 2023, the Paris Court of First Instance dismissed an action brought by NGOs against Suez (now Veolia). The pre-trial judge ruled that the applicant NGOs were not entitled to bring an action against a company within the Suez group that was not in charge of issuing the plan under the statutory duty of care, and that the vigilance plan in question was not the one referred to in the initial formal notice.
- A highly ambitious draft European directive is in the process of being adopted. The European Parliament adopted its position on June 1st, 2023. Certain key issues remain to be clarified, in particular to ensure the effective extraterritorial application of these new obligations and responsibilities. This will be debated in a trialogue between the institutions, the outcome of which is expected in late 2023/early 2024.
We will come back on this subject in our newsletter once a draft directive is available. A clear extension of the personal scope of the duty of vigilance has already been announced.
