Corporate Social Responsibility 3 Compliance control

Global Compact Incentive system –Use of the UN name and emblem –Global Compact Logo –Listing at the Global Compact website

Global Compact Compliance control –Concerning proper use of the logo Detailed rules on its use Prior permission required Possible sanctions: –Removal from the list of participants –Revocation of participant status –‚Legal proceedings with the appropriate authorities‘

Global Compact Compliance control cont. –Annual communication on progress Communications are published on the website Failure to communicate progress leads to qualification as ‚inactive‘ –Loss of right to use the Global Compact name and logo –Complaint procedure Open to everybody Non-reaction leads to qualification as ‚inactive‘ Breach of the GC principles may lead to removal from the list of participants

FSC Incentive system –FSC logo –FSC marketplace

FSC Compliance system –If a member engages in activities contrary to the interests of FSC or no longer meets the membership criteria, a destitution process may be initiated by the Board or an individual member (supported by two other members). –Consequences?

Ecolabel as a state-based system A comparison with the EU eco-label system (currently Regulation (EC) 66/2010 on the EU Ecolabel)

Ecolabel Incentive system –Use of the ecolabel –Promotion of the ecolabel by the Commission and the Member States –Purchasing policies in public procurement

State law based compliance control? Application procedure with review of submitted documentation –Including on-site verifications if production facilities are relevant contract with each operator, covering the terms of use of the EU Ecolabel The EU Ecolabel may only be used in connection with products complying with the EU Ecolabel criteria applicable to the products concerned and for which the EU Ecolabel has been awarded (Art. 9(2)).

State law based compliance control? Post-grant control, Art. 10(2) –The competent body shall, in respect of products to which it has awarded the EU Ecolabel, verify that the product complies with the EU Ecolabel criteria and assessment requirements published under Article 8, on a regular basis. The competent body shall, as appropriate, also undertake such verifications upon complaint. These verifications may take the form of random spot-checks –Can lead to prohibition of use and loss of fees paid

State law based compliance control? Art. 10(1): Any false or misleading advertising or use of any label or logo which leads to confusion with the EU Ecolabel shall be prohibited. Art. 17: Member States shall lay down the rules on penalties applicable to infringements of the provisions of this Regulation and shall take all measures necessary to ensure that they are implemented. The penalties provided for must be effective, proportionate and dissuasive.

State law based compliance control? Law of unfair commercial practices –Example: Unfair Commercial Practices Directive 2005/29/EC –The use of a logo as a commercial practice –The claim of adherence to a code of conduct as a commercial practice

Black list, Art. 5(5) with Annex A 1.Claiming to be a signatory to a code of conduct when the trader is not 2.Displaying a trust mark, quality mark or equivalent without having obtained the necessary authorisation 3.Claiming that a code of conduct has an endorsement from a public or other body which it does not have 4. Claiming that a trader (including his commercial practices) or a product has been approved, endorsed or authorised by a public or private body when he/it has not or making such a claim without complying with the terms of the approval, endorsement or authorisation

Misleading actions, Art. 6 1.A commercial practice shall be regarded as misleading if it contains false information and is therefore untruthful or in any way, including overall presentation, deceives or is likely to deceive the average consumer, even if the information is factually correct, in relation to one or more of the following elements, and in either case causes or is likely to cause him to take a transactional decision that he would not have taken otherwise: (b) the main characteristics of the product, such as its availability, benefits, risks, execution, composition, accessories, after-sale customer assistance and complaint handling, method and date of manufacture or provision, delivery, fitness for purpose, usage, quantity, specification, geographical or commercial origin or the results to be expected from its use, or the results and material features of tests or checks carried out on the product;

Misleading actions, Art A commercial practice shall also be regarded as misleading if, in its factual context, taking account of all its features and circumstances, it causes or is likely to cause the average consumer to take a transactional decision that he would not have taken otherwise, and it involves: (b) non-compliance by the trader with commitments contained in codes of conduct by which the trader has undertaken to be bound, where: (i) the commitment is not aspirational but is firm and is capable of being verified, and (ii) the trader indicates in a commercial practice that he is bound by the code.

State law based compliance control? Contract law –Example: Consumer Sales Law Directive 1999/44/EC –Art. 2: Conformity with the contract –1. The seller must deliver goods to the consumer which are in conformity with the contract of sale. –2. Consumer goods are presumed to be in conformity with the contract if they: –(a) comply with the description given by the seller and possess the qualities of the goods which the seller has held out to the consumer as a sample or model; –(b) are fit for any particular purpose for which the consumer requires them and which he made known to the seller at the time of conclusion of the contract and which the seller has accepted;

State law based compliance control? –(c) are fit for the purposes for which goods of the same type are normally used; –(d) show the quality and performance which are normal in goods of the same type and which the consumer can reasonably expect, given the nature of the goods and taking into account any public statements on the specific characteristics of the goods made about them by the seller, the producer or his representative, particularly in advertising or on labelling.

OECD Guidelines Incentive system? –Rather addressed to states and only indirectly to companies

OECD Guidelines Compliance control through National Contact Points (NCPs) –agencies established by adhering governments to promote and implement the Guidelines. –assist enterprises and their stakeholders to take appropriate measures to further the implementation of the Guidelines. –mediation and conciliation platform for resolving practical issues Černič, HanseLR 4 (2008), 71 (83 ff.); Perez, 15 Geo. Int'l Envtl. L. Rev., 1 (19 ff.).