Human trafficking encompasses all forms of compelled labor or services and it occurs around the world. The Business and Human Rights Lab (BHR) works to combat human trafficking by:
(1) assisting responsible business entities in understanding, preventing, and remediating any adverse human rights impacts of their operations, including forced labor; and (2) developing disruptive, systemic solutions to reduce vulnerability to trafficking and forced labor.
Law students enrolled in the BHR will engage in a combination of legal, compliance, and systemic reform work. The legal and compliance work of BHR will revolve around understanding current and prospective human rights due diligence-aligned legislation and developing tools for use by companies to comply with these regulations. The reform work of the BHR focuses on creating change at policy, service, and industry levels through collaborative partnerships across the nonprofit, corporate, and governmental sectors. BHR students work side-by-side with students enrolled in the Human Trafficking Clinic to develop and execute their projects.
Overall, students in the BHR will learn and practice collaboration, problem solving, and corporate client risk assessment and advisory skills. Students are responsible, under supervision, for all of the cases and projects within the BHR.
The BHR is a year-long commitment. Students earn 7 credits in the Fall and 4 credits in the Winter. The BHR meets the New York Pro-Bono requirement.