Founder & Principal Suzanne Spears will speak on a panel on 29 November at the UN Forum on Business and Human Rights, discussing the implementation of the UNGPs in the context of the pharmaceutical industry.
The session will explore the role of the pharmaceutical industry in ensuring access to the right to health, and the potential positive outcomes that could arise from human rights due diligence in the industry.
It will explore key challenges, such as accessibility and affordability of medicines, and key lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic, focusing on vaccine distribution, safeguarding labor rights, and the pivotal role of pharmaceutical businesses.
Founder & Principal Suzanne Spears will speak at the interactive workshop ‘ACICA Practice & Procedures toolkit: Cutting edge tools for timely, cost effective and fair arbitral proceedings’, hosted by Clifford Chance, on 12 October 2023.
The interactive workshop session will work through ACICA’s toolkit of best practice for each stage of the arbitration lifecycle, considering a ‘real world’ scenario involving a complex contract with supply chain implications.
Founder & Principal Suzanne Spears will speak on a panel on climate issues at the intersection of law and politics on 10 October, as part of Australian Arbitration Week 2023.
Hosted by Twenty Essex and Allen & Overy (Perth), the panel will examine how law and politics overlap in global and domestic efforts to coherently address the defining 21st century issue of climate change. It will consider different aspects of the evolving political, regulatory and legal landscape, especially as it pertains to dispute resolution lawyers.
Founder & Principal Suzanne Spears chaired the panel ‘Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG): Corporate Responsibility or State Responsibility?’ at the Australian Centre of International Commercial Arbitration (ACICA) and the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators Australia (Ciarb Australia) International Arbitration Conference 2023 on 9 October in Perth, Australia.
The theme of this year’s Conference is “Following a Black Swan: Transformative thinking and what comes next for International Arbitration“.
Building Bridges is a joint initiative launched in 2019 by Swiss public authorities, the finance community and the United Nations. The 2023 edition of Building Bridges will take place from 2-5 October in Geneva, Switzerland.
Founder and Principal Suzanne Spears will speak on Wednesday, 4 October on the “Energy Transition: Green and Just” panel.
As renewable energy sources can create new human rights challenges, the financial sector will need to address climate and human rights concerns in parallel.
The panel will discuss how to assess and draft transition plans that achieve both environmental sustainability and social justice to inform financial institutions.
For more information on the panel and how to register for Building Bridges, click here.
Founder & Principal Suzanne Spears spoke at the World Law Forum’s Roundtable on ESG Litigation and Regulatory Enforcement Action, held in The Lansdowne Club, London, on Tuesday, 20 June.
The roundtable comprised global thought leaders in law, who debated a range of industry issues, including the rise of shareholder activism and ESG-related disputes and uncovering hidden risks in supply chains. Suzanne discussed the suitability of arbitration for settling ESG disputes.
Founder & Principal Suzanne Spears spoke at the annual IOE-BDA-DPDHL International Human Rights Conference on Responsible Business Conduct on Wednesday, 19 April.
She discussed the human right to a healthy environment and what it means for business.
Organised by the International Organisation of Employers (IOE) together with the Confederation of German Employers’ Associations (BDA) and hosted by Deutsche Post DHL Group (DPDHL), this high-level conference took place in Bonn, Germany, and provided a forum for global leaders to discuss and learn about the latest developments in business and human rights, including legislative due diligence initiatives, ESG preparation, environmental concerns, and digital transformation’s impact on human rights.
Founder & Principal Suzanne Spears will speak during the webinar, “Getting Ready: Multistakeholder Perspective on the Climate Change-Human Rights Nexus” on 13 December at 18:00 CET.
The webinar is organised jointly between the International Organisation of Employers and Konrad Adenauer Stiftung.
The webinar will explore the relationship between human rights and climate change, bringing together leading policy experts to discuss key issues and current trends. The event will examine how multilateral institutions are adapting to new due diligence requirements in line with new environmental obligations.
Founder and Principal Suzanne Spears will be participating in a panel discussion entitled “Preventing ‘Corporate Capture’: Responsible Policy and Regulatory Engagement”, at the 11th United Nations Forum on Business and Human Rights.
The panel discussion will be held at the United Nations in Geneva on 30 November 2022, at 3:00pm – 4:40pm CET in Room XVIII.
