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European Coalition for Corporate Justice

ECCJ

The European Coalition for Corporate Justice advocates for corporate accountability, transparency, and justice for victims of malpractice.

Lobbying Activity

Meeting with Kira Marie Peter-Hansen (Member of the European Parliament) and Transport and Environment (European Federation for Transport and Environment) and

17 Nov 2025 · Sustainability omnibus - update for civil society

Meeting with Kira Marie Peter-Hansen (Member of the European Parliament, Shadow rapporteur) and Transport and Environment (European Federation for Transport and Environment) and

3 Nov 2025 · Sustainability omnibus - update for civil society

Meeting with Kira Marie Peter-Hansen (Member of the European Parliament, Shadow rapporteur) and Transport and Environment (European Federation for Transport and Environment) and

2 Oct 2025 · Sustainability omnibus - update for civil society

Meeting with René Repasi (Member of the European Parliament) and CIDSE - International Alliance of Catholic social justice organisations and Bischöfliches Hilfswerk Misereor e.V.

16 Jul 2025 · Sustainability Omnibus

Meeting with Nicolo Brignoli (Cabinet of Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis) and ClientEarth AISBL and

18 Jun 2025 · Omnibus

Meeting with Kira Marie Peter-Hansen (Member of the European Parliament, Shadow rapporteur) and Global Witness

22 May 2025 · Sustainability omnibus and climate transition plans

Meeting with Lynn Boylan (Member of the European Parliament, Shadow rapporteur for opinion) and Frank Bold Society

12 May 2025 · Omnibus Bill - attack on EU's human rights and sustainability laws

Meeting with Lara Wolters (Member of the European Parliament, Shadow rapporteur)

8 May 2025 · Omnibus

Meeting with Kira Marie Peter-Hansen (Member of the European Parliament, Shadow rapporteur) and Transport and Environment (European Federation for Transport and Environment) and

29 Apr 2025 · Sustainability omnibus

Meeting with Marie Toussaint (Member of the European Parliament, Shadow rapporteur for opinion) and Transport and Environment (European Federation for Transport and Environment) and

29 Apr 2025 · Omnibus I

Meeting with Gerben-Jan Gerbrandy (Member of the European Parliament) and Clean Clothes Campaign / Stichting Schone Kleren Kampagne

24 Apr 2025 · Omnibus meeting

Meeting with Jörgen Warborn (Member of the European Parliament, Rapporteur) and EUROPEAN TRADE UNION CONFEDERATION and EuropeanIssuers

10 Apr 2025 · Omnibus

Meeting with Pawel Wisniewski (Cabinet of Commissioner Christophe Hansen)

8 Apr 2025 · The first Simplification Omnibus with a focus on the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD)

Meeting with Kira Marie Peter-Hansen (Member of the European Parliament, Shadow rapporteur) and Frank Bold Society and Shift Project Limited

7 Apr 2025 · CSO exchange on sustainability omnibus

Meeting with Gabriele Bischoff (Member of the European Parliament) and EUROPEAN TRADE UNION CONFEDERATION

26 Mar 2025 · Omnibus

Meeting with William Sleath (Director Secretariat-General) and Friends of the Earth Europe and

20 Feb 2025 · The Omnibus proposal regarding the CSRD, the CSDDD, and taxonomy

Meeting with Elena Arveras (Cabinet of Commissioner Maria Luís Albuquerque)

14 Feb 2025 · Sustainability Omnibus

Meeting with Vita Jukne (Cabinet of Commissioner Jessika Roswall) and ClientEarth AISBL and

29 Jan 2025 · Upcoming Omnibus proposal

Meeting with Alexandra Hild (Cabinet of Commissioner Ekaterina Zaharieva) and Human Rights Watch and Clean Clothes Campaign / Stichting Schone Kleren Kampagne

21 Jan 2025 · Simplification, in particular the upcoming Omnibus proposal

Meeting with Alexandra Hild (Cabinet of Commissioner Ekaterina Zaharieva)

21 Jan 2025 · Simplification, in particular the upcoming Omnibus proposal

Meeting with Mirzha De Manuel (Cabinet of Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis), Nicolo Brignoli (Cabinet of Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis) and

20 Jan 2025 · Exchange of views on the simplification policy

Meeting with Terhi Lehtonen (Cabinet of Executive Vice-President Teresa Ribera Rodríguez) and Human Rights Watch and

14 Jan 2025 · Discussion on the CSRD and CSDDD frameworks

Meeting with Fiona Knab-Lunny (Cabinet of Commissioner Michael McGrath) and Human Rights Watch and

9 Jan 2025 · Meeting with a delegation of civil society organisations (CSOs) to discuss their concerns regarding the ‘omnibus’ initiative recently announced by President Von der Leyen.

Meeting with Arthur Corbin (Cabinet of Executive Vice-President Stéphane Séjourné) and WWF European Policy Programme and

12 Dec 2024 · Sustainable corporate reporting

Response to Taking stock of the Judicial Training Strategy 2021-2024

30 Apr 2024

The European Coalition for Corporate Justice (ECCJ) is the largest civil society network devoted to corporate accountability, gathering more than 480 NGOs, trade unions and academic institutions throughout Europe to develop a common vision and approach to the issue. Adequate judicial training is an important lever in ECCJs fight against corporate impunity. In the context of the upcoming entry into force of the Corporate Sustainable Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD) and taking stock of our networks experience, the document attached elaborates on some key considerations for the upcoming Judicial Training Strategy (JTS). The recommendations are divided in two sections as follows: Recommendations on the content of the trainings: 1. Develop adequate judicial training containing both broad corporate accountability and specific elements for the effective application and enforcement of the CSDDD 2. Increase legal certainty by promoting an ample interpretation based on international standards and the objectives of the law Recommendations on form: 1. Use case law as training basis 2. Define specific criteria for experts who can be consulted as amici curiae to support judges in the collection of cross-disciplinary advice 3. Consider power imbalance among the actors involved and open space for the contributions of civil society organizations 4. Act now, timely action is crucial to prevent the corporate capture of judicial training
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Meeting with Helmut Scholz (Member of the European Parliament) and EUROPEAN TRADE UNION CONFEDERATION and

18 Apr 2024 · CSDDD

Meeting with Heidi Hautala (Member of the European Parliament, Shadow rapporteur) and Cisco Systems Inc. and

18 Apr 2024 · Multi-stakeholder discussion on CSDDD

Meeting with Marie Toussaint (Member of the European Parliament)

31 Jan 2024 · Due diligence

Meeting with Lara Wolters (Member of the European Parliament, Rapporteur)

23 Oct 2023 · Staff level: CSDD Directive

Meeting with Lara Wolters (Member of the European Parliament, Rapporteur) and INDUSTRIA DE DISEÑO TEXTIL, S.A.

26 Sept 2023 · Staff level: CSDD Directive

Meeting with Lara Wolters (Member of the European Parliament, Rapporteur)

24 Aug 2023 · Staff level: CSDD Directive

Meeting with Lara Wolters (Member of the European Parliament, Rapporteur)

11 Apr 2023 · Staff level: CSDD Directive

Meeting with Lara Wolters (Member of the European Parliament, Rapporteur) and EUROPEAN TRADE UNION CONFEDERATION and

21 Mar 2023 · Meeting to discuss the burden of proof in the civil liability regime of CSDDD

Meeting with Lara Wolters (Member of the European Parliament, Rapporteur)

17 Mar 2023 · Staff level: CSDD Directive

Meeting with Marc Botenga (Member of the European Parliament) and Clean Clothes Campaign / Stichting Schone Kleren Kampagne and Oxfam-en-Belgique / Oxfam-in-België

1 Mar 2023 · Due Diligence

Meeting with Heidi Hautala (Member of the European Parliament, Shadow rapporteur) and Business Human Rights Resource Centre

28 Feb 2023 · Due Diligence

Meeting with Karen Melchior (Member of the European Parliament) and Amnesty International Limited and

27 Feb 2023 · Discussion of importance of multi-tier compliance obligation, clear definitions and NGO concerns in CSDDD.

Meeting with René Repasi (Member of the European Parliament, Rapporteur for opinion)

23 Feb 2023 · EU-Lieferkettengesetz/ Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD) - Staff Level

Meeting with Malte Gallée (Member of the European Parliament, Shadow rapporteur for opinion) and Amnesty International Limited and

13 Jan 2023 · Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive

Meeting with Heidi Hautala (Member of the European Parliament, Shadow rapporteur) and Amnesty International Limited and

13 Jan 2023 · Due Diligence (staff level)

Meeting with Damien Carême (Member of the European Parliament) and Amnesty International Limited and

13 Jan 2023 · Le devoir de vigilance des entreprises

Meeting with Malte Gallée (Member of the European Parliament, Shadow rapporteur for opinion)

10 Jan 2023 · Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence

Meeting with Heidi Hautala (Member of the European Parliament, Shadow rapporteur) and Amnesty International Limited and

15 Nov 2022 · NGO roundtable on Due Diligence

Meeting with Axel Voss (Member of the European Parliament, Shadow rapporteur) and Amnesty International Limited and

15 Nov 2022 · Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence

Meeting with Anna Cavazzini (Member of the European Parliament)

7 Nov 2022 · CSDDD in INTA

Meeting with Leila Chaibi (Member of the European Parliament) and EUROPEAN TRADE UNION CONFEDERATION

27 Oct 2022 · Directive on corporate sustainability due diligence

Meeting with Damien Carême (Member of the European Parliament, Shadow rapporteur for opinion) and EUROPEAN TRADE UNION CONFEDERATION and WWF European Policy Programme

5 Jul 2022 · Devoir de vigilance des entreprises en matière de durabilité

Meeting with Heidi Hautala (Member of the European Parliament, Rapporteur) and EUROPEAN TRADE UNION CONFEDERATION and

5 Jul 2022 · Stakeholder meeting on corporate sustainability due diligence (staff level)

ECCJ demands EU forced labor ban include victim remediation

20 Jun 2022
Topic — The EU is consulting on measures to prohibit forced labor products from entering the single market.
Message — The coalition requests a binding law that applies to all companies regardless of size. They demand that lifting trade bans be strictly contingent on providing compensation to victims. Companies should also be forced to publicly map their entire supplier networks.123
Why — This proposal would establish the mandatory corporate accountability and victim restitution the group advocates for.4
Impact — Businesses with opaque supply chains would face product recalls and public shaming through sanctions lists.5
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Meeting with Malte Gallée (Member of the European Parliament) and Global Witness and Frank Bold Society

10 Jun 2022 · Due Diligence

Meeting with Axel Voss (Member of the European Parliament, Shadow rapporteur) and OXFAM INTERNATIONAL EU ADVOCACY OFFICE and Rud Pedersen Public Affairs Brussels

2 Jun 2022 · Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence

Response to Sustainable corporate governance

6 May 2022

The European Coalition for Corporate Justice (ECCJ), representing over 480 civil society, trade union and consumer organisations from 17 countries, welcomes the long-awaited proposal. This directive could represent a landmark step forward in the direction of minimising the negative impacts of businesses on workers, communities and the environment worldwide, and advancing corporate accountability and justice. However, despite many positive elements, the proposal falls short on numerous fundamental points. The text is riddled with flaws and shortcomings that risk dramatically limiting its positive impact on human rights and the environment. These call for significant improvements over the course of ensuing negotiations. In particular, and for the purpose of strengthening the text, we encourage the European Parliament and EU Member States to take into account the reflections and recommendations in the attached file.
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Meeting with Werner Stengg (Cabinet of Executive Vice-President Margrethe Vestager) and OXFAM INTERNATIONAL EU ADVOCACY OFFICE and

14 Feb 2022 · Sustainable Corporate Governance

Meeting with Anthony Whelan (Cabinet of President Ursula von der Leyen)

2 Feb 2022 · Commission proposal on Sustainable Corporate Governance, looking specifically at issues of corporate liability

Meeting with Antoine Colombani (Cabinet of Executive Vice-President Frans Timmermans) and ClientEarth AISBL and

26 Jan 2022 · Sustainable corporate governance and due diligence

Meeting with Andrea Beltramello (Cabinet of Executive Vice-President Valdis Dombrovskis) and Global Witness and

29 Nov 2021 · Due diligence and forced labour

Meeting with Kyriacos Charalambous (Cabinet of Commissioner Johannes Hahn), Sibylle Bikar (Cabinet of Commissioner Johannes Hahn)

25 Nov 2021 · Sustainable Corporate Governance, Corporate Due Diligence and Corporate Accountability

Meeting with Marlene Rosemarie Madsen (Cabinet of Commissioner Elisa Ferreira) and Clean Clothes Campaign / Stichting Schone Kleren Kampagne

23 Nov 2021 · Sustainable Corporate Governance

Meeting with Thierry Breton (Commissioner) and

8 Nov 2021 · Sustainable Corporate Governance

Meeting with Agnieszka Skonieczna (Cabinet of Commissioner Thierry Breton), Filomena Chirico (Cabinet of Commissioner Thierry Breton)

22 Sept 2021 · Sustainable Corporate Governance

Meeting with Diana Montero Melis (Cabinet of Commissioner Jutta Urpilainen), Renaud Savignat (Cabinet of Commissioner Jutta Urpilainen) and

17 Sept 2021 · upcoming proposal on sustainable corporate governance

Meeting with Diana Montero Melis (Cabinet of Commissioner Jutta Urpilainen) and Finnwatch ry

14 Sept 2021 · upcoming proposal on sustainable corporate governance and mandatory due diligence

Meeting with Andrea Beltramello (Cabinet of Executive Vice-President Valdis Dombrovskis), Caroline Boeshertz (Cabinet of Executive Vice-President Valdis Dombrovskis) and

27 May 2021 · Due diligence

Meeting with Charmaine Hili (Cabinet of President Ursula von der Leyen)

26 May 2021 · Sustainable Corporate Governance

Meeting with Simona Constantin (Cabinet of Vice-President Věra Jourová) and Clean Clothes Campaign / Stichting Schone Kleren Kampagne and European Center for Constitutional and Human Rights

7 Apr 2021 · EU Sustainable Corporate Governance & Corporate Due Diligence

Meeting with Diana Montero Melis (Cabinet of Commissioner Jutta Urpilainen), Renaud Savignat (Cabinet of Commissioner Jutta Urpilainen) and

22 Mar 2021 · corporate due diligence

Meeting with Didier Reynders (Commissioner) and

18 Mar 2021 · Substainable Corporate Governance

Meeting with Axel Voss (Member of the European Parliament, Shadow rapporteur) and ClientEarth AISBL and

15 Mar 2021 · Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence

Meeting with Lucrezia Busa (Cabinet of Commissioner Didier Reynders) and Friends of Europe and WeMove Europe gGmbH

27 Jan 2021 · Substainable Corporate Governance

Meeting with Didier Reynders (Commissioner) and

4 Dec 2020 · Substainable corporate governance

Meeting with Axel Voss (Member of the European Parliament, Shadow rapporteur) and Amnesty International Limited and

30 Nov 2020 · Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence

Response to Sustainable corporate governance

8 Oct 2020

The European Coalition for Corporate Justice (ECCJ), a coalition of campaigns and national platforms of NGOs, trade unions, consumer organisations and academics for corporate accountability rules, representing over 450 organisations from 17 countries, highly welcomes this initiative. We strongly welcome acknowledgement from the Commission that companies have failed to voluntarily address human rights and environmental risks and impacts in their operations and value chains, and that the EU legal framework lags behind the development of global value chains and corporate structures. A large number of EU companies continue to be involved in or linked to appalling human rights abuses and environmental harm across the globe. Companies have failed to address abuses perpetrated by subsidiaries and business partners in their global value chains, over whom they have considerable control or influence, and have taken advantage of weak governance systems to minimize costs and maximize profits. A lack of strong corporate accountability laws, alongside complicated corporate structures and convoluted supply chains, make it often impossible, to hold these companies accountable. Impunity has inspired a profitable race to the bottom. On the basis of these considerations, we would like to make the following recommendations: 1) The impact assessment should measure the impacts and benefits of mandating corporate due diligence to all business enterprises (whether domiciled in the EU or not), regardless of sector or size, in line with the scope of existing international due diligence standards (UN, ILO, OECD). All companies must have a legal obligation to respect human rights and the environment in their operations and value chains, and to conduct ongoing due diligence to this end. Due diligence requirements must be complemented with directors’ obligations. Directors should be required to develop a strategy that addresses these impacts, and account for its implementation. 2) The impact assessment should, most importantly, consider the impacts and benefits (both within the EU and outside of it) of robust enforcement mechanisms. As suggested in the assessment and concluded in the study on supply chain due diligence, voluntary measures do not suffice. Non-compliance with due diligence obligations must entail a liability. It is crucial that companies can be held liable for adverse impacts in their global value chains and victims can have access to judicial remedy and compensation. The impact assessment should, therefore, measure the potential impacts of all enforcement options, including civil, administrative and criminal liability. In particular, the impacts and benefits of rules on adequate, timely and effective access to justice before EU courts for victims from third countries, including rules on disclosure of evidence and statute of limitations, should also be impact-assessed. Without civil remedy and access to justice, there will be no real incentive for companies to properly conduct due diligence, let alone remediate harm and compensate for damages. It is fundamental to take this into account when forecasting the degree of compliance and therefore the future impacts and benefits. Due consideration to civil remedy rules is needed to measure the impacts not only for victims, but also companies and the internal market. Differences in the liability regimes applicable in the Member States and the uneven enforcement of the right to compensation may negatively affect competition and the proper functioning of the internal market. The impacts and benefits of addressing such differences for the purpose of a true level playing field should likewise be considered. 3) It is critical that the impact assessment takes into special account the incalculable costs of irresponsible business conduct that are not borne by companies themselves but externalised to workers, society and the environment, and therefore considers the cost of legislative inaction.
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Meeting with Axel Voss (Member of the European Parliament, Shadow rapporteur) and OXFAM INTERNATIONAL EU ADVOCACY OFFICE and

22 Sept 2020 · Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence

Meeting with Didier Reynders (Commissioner) and

5 Jun 2020 · Sustainable corporate governance

Meeting with Axel Voss (Member of the European Parliament, Shadow rapporteur) and Global Witness

2 Jun 2020 · Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence

Meeting with Tiina Astola (Director-General Justice and Consumers)

13 May 2019 · Human rights and business

Response to Targeted revision of EU consumer law directives

21 Jun 2018

ECCJ welcomes the opportunity to give feedback to this legislative proposal to advance the availability of collective redress to victims of corporate malpractice. However given the previous acknowledgment by EU institutions of the value of a horizontal collective redress for all fundamental rights violations and subsequent forms of harm; and recognising the poor uptake of that 2013 Recommendation by Member States; we see no proper justification for restricting the scope of the current proposal to only consumers. The given rational for limiting the proposed scope to consumers has been that cases of mass consumer harm are the most ubiquitous, moreover they are anticipated to increase with economic globalisation. This evaluation ignores not only the fundamental right to effective remedy of all victims of corporate malpractice; it also fails to consider the factor of seriousness of harm (as opposed to mere frequency) with regards to other types of harm linked to fundamental rights’ violations. It also fails to consider that other forms of mass harm events, predictably environmental, are also likely to increase with globalization. Compared to, for example, mass environmental harm cases, consumer cases may be more frequent but are typically far less egregious, causing comparatively far less serious forms of damage to life, limb and property. Examples of the former (typically industrial negligence cases such as oil and toxic chemical spills or man-made earthquakes from shale gas exploration) involve harm that is comparatively longer-lasting, more life–threatening and egregious; whilst the latter typically only involve small to medium scale financial loss. The restricted scope thus represents a regretful step backwards from a previously acknowledged need for horizontal action in this area. Furthermore, globalization and increased market activity, on account of technological advances amongst other factors, has already begun to initiate new forms of environmental and other types of harm, causing damage to many other than consumers. One such example has been the effects of shale gas exploration, which has caused thousands of man-made earthquakes and occasioned damage to hundreds of thousands of properties in the state of Groningen in the Netherlands alone with estimated damages of €5 billion. Considering not only the seriousness but also the future evolution of corporate malpractice occasioning harm, the European Coalition for Corporate Justice therefore stresses the need for a return to the, already acknowledged as necessary, horizontal scope for collective redress to cover all forms of harm occasioned by violations of fundamental rights as granted under EU law. We hope that proper efforts will be made in the upcoming legislative process to expand the scope of the proposal to others types of mass harm situations, including all those identified in the aforementioned 2013 Recommendation. We note with interest that in the Commission final report into the adoption of the 2013 Collective Redress recommendation, there is not one single confirmed instance of litigation abuse during the entire four year study period across the entire European Union.6 We sincerely hope this serves to bring some much needed perspective into deliberations concerning the appropriate balance to be struck between safeguarding against (still hypothetical) litigation abuse and actual, current instances of corporate abuse occasioning mass harm to all claimant victims - not only consumers. Specifically this should not serve to exclude the entire legal profession from representing consumers. Such a measure as foreseen in the current proposal is overzealous. The hypothetical problem of litigation abuse in Europe is far more sensibly addressed via proportionate restrictions and regulation addressing third-party funding and contingency fees (subjecting the latter to upper limits, as is already the case in various jurisdictions).
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