Preface and acknowledgements

In March 2019, I had the great honour of receiving the first IALS PhD Thesis Book prize. This allowed me to publish my doctoral thesis, which I completed at SOAS between 2010 and 2015, as a monograph. While the process of converting my thesis into a monograph was supposed to be relatively quick, it nonetheless took several years for a variety of reasons. The business and human rights field is a dynamic one, with laws and jurisprudence evolving at breakneck speed over the last decade, owing in large part to the efforts of corporate accountability activists and the momentum created by the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights. As a result, my thesis, which I had finished at the end of 2015, needed to be thoroughly revised. Furthermore, the significant advances that occurred while I was writing this manuscript, particularly in corporate group liability and human rights due diligence, could not be ignored, even after the final version of my manuscript was completed. This resulted in numerous revisions, which pushed back the publication date. The publication of this manuscript was also delayed for personal reasons. My twins, Orson and Gaël, were born in the late summer of 2018 and required my undivided attention as a mother. In addition, the global Covid-19 pandemic that began in 2019 and the subsequent juggling of work and family life slowed the writing of this manuscript. The last few years have made me painfully aware of the challenges that many academics, especially women, face in balancing academic career and family life. Despite these challenges, it is a great pleasure for me to see this project come to fruition.

This book could not have been published without the support and assistance of others. I am greatly indebted to the wonderful people who made this journey possible.

First and foremost, I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to Professor Peter Muchlinski, my PhD research supervisor, for reading parts of the manuscript and providing moral support throughout the PhD and the writing of this monograph. I am privileged to have received his insights and intellectual guidance, as well as his mentoring.

I would like to thank my PhD examiners, Professors Nadia Bernaz and Bill Bowring, who encouraged me and gave me the confidence to pursue publication of my doctoral thesis.

I would also like to thank the SOAS School of Law for allowing me to complete my PhD and write this monograph as a Research Associate, as well as everyone who helped and encouraged me during and after the PhD, especially Professors Nicholas Foster, Philippe Cullet, Lutz Oette, and Lynn Welchman. Thanks are also due to Milieu, my employer, for providing the flexibility I needed to work on this personal project. Further thanks are due to my colleagues at Milieu, especially Chloé Fages, Lise Oulès and Cindy Schoumacher, for their support over the years.

I would also like to extend my thanks to the lawyers and campaigners I met during my research who took the time to provide invaluable information and to facilitate my research journey. Their fight for corporate accountability and access to justice is an inspiration for me, and I hope to have captured it in this book. Thanks are also due to the many academics who contribute to business and human rights scholarship and provide stimulating ideas to improve corporate accountability and access to justice. I am especially grateful to Professor Nadia Bernaz, who I have already acknowledged, and Dr Rachel Chambers for kindly reviewing my publication proposals and papers.

This book would not have been possible without the IALS, especially the IALS Open Book Service for Law editorial board and judging panel, which bestowed the first IALS PhD Thesis Book prize on me and believed in the academic strength of my writing project. I am honoured to have received this award and to be able to publish my book in open access. Thanks are also due to Sandy Dutczak and Steven Whittle for their support throughout the writing and publication of this monograph, and Fiona Cownie for her helpful comments on the manuscript. At University London Press I would like to thank Robert Davies for managing the manuscript’s publication with patience and professionalism, Lauren De’Ath for marketing, and the copy-editors for their excellent and thorough work.

I would like to thank all of my family and friends for their encouragement and support throughout my PhD journey and the writing of this monograph. My heartfelt gratitude goes to my SOAS colleagues, particularly Dr Demetra Loizou, Dr Jonathan Bashi Rudahindwa, Dr Laïla Fathi, Dr Hany Rashwan and Dr Qing-Chao Wang, with whom I shared the joys and lows of the PhD.

I am grateful to my mother Charline Décaudin, as well as my husband Joshua Roberts, whose unconditional love and support have enabled me to embark upon the path to this monograph. I owe a special thanks to Joshua Roberts, who spent countless hours reviewing my chapters and assisting me in reflecting on my research to produce what I hope is a valuable study. Finally, I would like to thank my three sons Raphael, Orson and Gaël for their patience in waiting for their mother to complete her writing project.

I have made every effort to accurately state the law as of 1 May 2021. Where possible, later updates have been included.

Virginie Rouas, 8 December 2021