This book explores the potential of domestic contract and tort laws to contribute to the important goal of human rights and decent work in global supply chains.

The book explores existing contract and tort litigation against multinational business entities for violations of human rights, with a particular focus on case law from the United Kingdom; however, the book also addresses relevant jurisprudence from other common law jurisdictions such as the USA and Canada. The unique contribution of the book is to focus on these claims as labour rights violations: to consider if and how the status of claimants as workers can or does affect these claims in contract and tort.

The possibilities of a new international treaty on business and human rights is drawing attention, whereas until recently, the focus of transnational human rights litigation has been on the Alien Tort Statute in the USA. However, even if a new international treaty is agreed, or if new domestic human rights due diligence legislation is passed, domestic contract and tort laws will still be important as complements to any new such measures.

In these two ways, the book adds a new perspective to the business and human rights debate. It will appeal to domestic employment law scholars for its discussion of the possibilities at common law.