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Every day, we see countless cases of human rights violations committed by corporations. They range from modern slavery, child labour, up to complicity in war crimes. States should prevent such violations but mostly they are unable or unwilling to do so. Large corporations have inexhaustible resources and their multinational character requires trans-state cooperation. As a result the enforcement of existing norms has proven to be largely inexecutable. The interaction of states, international institutions and civil society has changed dramatically. This globalisation process has created significant challenges. Recent history is full of examples of failure of existing international mechanisms. International conventions and self-binding instruments largely failing in their effectiveness. In this context of new power structures the question is raised if multi-national corporations are beyond the reach of the law? In fact, multi-national corporations possess legal personality and are acknowledged players in international law. This thesis submits that multi-national corporations can be held responsible for human rights violations, based on existing international law.

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The author was born 1985 in Austria and obtained her law degree at the Karl-Franzens University of Graz. During an academic exchange program at Utrecht University, she enjoyed deepening her legal knowledge concerning human rights. Following participation in specialised seminars and the work at NGOs and UNHCR establish the basis for this work.

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