Published on 7 September 2018 in Client Alerts

A UN working Group issues draft binding international instrument on Business and Human Rights

In June 2014, the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva adopted a resolution drafted by Ecuador and South Africa to establish an open-ended intergovernmental working group to elaborate an international legally binding instrument on Transnational Corporations and Other Business Enterprises with respect to human rights.  Chaired by Ecuador, the intergovernmental working group (IGWG) has met three times (July 2015, October 2016 and October 2017).   Elements for a draft  legally binding instrument were issued by the Chair in September 2017, and a Zero Draft instrument and optional protocol were presented in July 2018 (a summary of the Zero Draft is available here).  A fourth IGWG session will be held in Geneva in October 2018.

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Volterra Fietta partner Robert G Volterra leads counsel team at his seventh hearing of 2026

Volterra Fietta’s intensive hearing schedule for 2026 continued apace, as partner Robert G Volterra led a Volterra Fietta team last week in another ICSID hearing. 

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Volterra Fietta moves into its new London headquarters at 110 High Holborn

The move reflects the continued growth of the firm’s practice and the partners’ long-term commitment to their London headquarters, through the signing of a new 10-year lease.

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The Council of Europe adopts the Chișinău Declaration to address the application of the European Convention on Human Rights to migration issues

On 15 May 2026, the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe adopted the Chișinău Declaration. 

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Cambodia and Thailand to engage in compulsory conciliation under UNCLOS over unilaterally severed Maritime Pact

On 5 May 2026, Thailand announced a unilateral termination of its Memorandum of Understanding dated 18 June 2001 (“Agreement”) with Cambodia pertaining to their joint exploration rights in the area of their overlapping Maritime Claims to the Continental Shelf.

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