New website

We have moved to a smarter new website. 

Therefore, this blog won't be updated anymore, and will eventually be taken down. 

The new website can be reached through the same old address, www.banyan-advocates.co.uk

Banyan statement following the Kiobel decision

London, 18^th April 2013

Banyan is disappointed by the Kiobel decision but still sees glimmer of hope for victims of corporate abuse

Banyan is disappointed that the US Supreme Court chose to reject the plaintiffs' appeal in Kiobel. The decision is troubling, making it more difficult for victims of human rights abuses - including war crimes and torture - to seek redress. Yet the decision has raised as many questions as it has left unanswered, and is in no way a grant of immunity to corporations who aid or abet such abuses.

Here is what we know:

1) The court rejected the plaintiffs' appeal unanimously

2) All nine justices did not rule out corporations being the subject of Alien Torts Statute ("ATS") lawsuits

3) The main opinion argued that we should presume that the ATS does not apply outside the US. However, this presumption can be overcome when "the claims touch and concern the territory of the United States... with sufficient force"

4) This opinion also argued that this principle should be extended to corporations. Mere corporate presence in the US does not suffice, and something more is required.

5) Four of the justices separately argued that showing some connection between the case and the US should be the threshold, requiring no presumption against application outside the US

Simply put, corporations can still be sued, and can still be held liable for aiding and abetting human rights abuses.

The threshold that plaintiffs now have to meet requires some significant connection to the US. 

There is still a great deal that we don't know, including:

1) Whether the relevant connection is between the US and the act of abuse; or whether it is between the US and the act, victim or perpetrator of abuse. The main opinion implies that the connection could be between the US and the act, victim or perpetrator

2) What the threshold is to show a sufficient connection in each case

Justice Kennedy's separate opinion seems to envisage these questions being clarified through further lawsuits - another indication that companies cannot take this decision as a grant of immunity.

At Banyan, we are proud of the work that our team did to support the amicus curiae and the plaintiffs in arguing that corporations can be sued and that the ATS should apply extraterritorially. Our research came up in oral argument and was dealt with in the judgment itself. We look forward to mobilising more SOAS postgraduates to provide research on corporate accountability, be it supporting further such litigation; or engaging with legislative and policy processes at the national and global levels.

Banyan in the Guardian!

Banyan got some excellent coverage in the Guardian this week. With thanks to Anna Fazackerley for getting in touch with us and wanting to know more about the organisation.

Student solicitors step into the breach

Introducing our new committee members: Hayley and Matthew

A little late in the day, but we would like to introduce our new committee members Hayley Ichilcik and Matthew Burnett-Stuart.

Matthew Burnett-Stuart is a part-time MA Law student in his first year at SOAS  

Hayley Ichilcik is a qualified solicitor and part-time LLM student at SOAS

With this expanded team, Banyan hopes to build on its successes of 2012 , find further exciting projects and offer even more opportunities to students at SOAS seeking experience on real-life projects with a human rights/social justice orientation. Their input will also allow for a presence at SOAS to co-ordinate activities and organise events.

SOAS law students establish international human rights advocacy network

With thanks to Becky Waller-Davies at Lawyer 2B for writing such a positive article about our work! 

SOAS law students establish international human rights advocacy network

PROJECT: Minority Rights Group

This project is no longer accepting applicants, but if you are very interested please get in touch and we can see if there are any further opportunities.

In brief: Minority Rights Group is looking for a team of Banyan students to conduct a research project on equitable, participatory and transparent models of benefits and royalties sharing with communities (ideally indigenous communities). This project is linked to the implementation of a case before the African Commission on Human and Peoples Rights (CEMIRIDE and MRG (onbehalf of EWC) v Kenya) where the Commission recommended, inter alia, that Kenya “pay royalties to the Endorois [semi-nomadic indigenous people of approx. 60000 people] from existing economic activities”.

The research project will aim at providing concrete material on and examples of levels of royalty and benefit sharing with local communities (i.e. examples of revenue sharing from natural resource extraction/ tourism by communities in comparable situations). Examples from Africa would be ideal but examples from other regions could also be of benefit.

This data will ideally be presented in a clear memorandum format and the evidence obtained will be used both to inform and subsequently back up the Endorois’ position in negotiations with the Kenyan government. 

We are looking for a team of at least 2 to 3 students to work on this project.

Commitments: Minority Rights Group are looking to get a good draft of this research project completed by early April. Time commitments for individual students will depend on the size of the team working on the project.


Deadline: As soon as possible. Please email us at soas@banyan-advocates.co.uk detailing your availability and interest in the project. Please also attach a CV.

Banyan Summary 2012

2012 has been an exciting year for Banyan, and as we begin our first full year, we would like to give you a quick summary of our activities so far:

April 2012 saw the official creation of Banyan: SOAS Advocates, with an extremely successful opening event on 23^rd April. “Putting your degree into action” saw a number of speakers from legal, NGO and academic backgrounds discuss the many ways students could demonstrate their abilities and experience, encouraging them to make the most of opportunities to apply their skills in practice on different research projects in a range of environments.

Since then, Banyan has offered a series of exciting opportunities to postgraduate students at SOAS.

In August 2012, the Revenue Watch Institute (RWI) asked Banyan to build a team of several students to work with RWI in supporting the implementation of the government of Guinea’s new mining code. The students have helped the government in ongoing negotiations and drafted research reports on different mining companies.

In the same month three Banyan students joined the MSI Project, an NGO monitoring the human rights impacts of multi-stakeholder initiatives. They wrote reports analysing some of these initiatives and helped generate recommendations to improve their adherence to human rights standards.

In November 2012, the Aegis Trust came to Banyan via Dr Chandra Sriram from the SOAS School of Law. Four postgraduate students are researching and drafting a report regarding Sudan and the ICC, which should be available by mid-February 2013.

Banyan is in the process of creating a team to work on a case with human rights solicitors Deighton Pierce Glynn. Deighton are particularly interested in Banyan’s multi-lingual membership as the case relates to immunity for torture prosecution and a leading official in an Arabic speaking country.

Finally, Dr Lutz Oette at SOAS has asked Banyan to recruit a single student to collaborate with the African Centre for Justice and Peace on a major report focused on Sudan.

As you can tell, this year has been an exciting one for Banyan and its members, something we’re hoping to continue this in 2013. If you'd like to get involved in running Banyan and working alongside out partner organisations, please contact us at  soas@banyan-advocates.co.uk.

We hope everyone has an excellent 2013!

Luke, Jess and Deval

PROJECT: African Centre for Justice and Peace

THIS PROJECT IS NOW AT FULL CAPACITY

We will let you know if and when more people are required 

In brief: Banyan has been asked by the Lutz Oette, a lecturer in human rights law, to work on a project in collaboration with the African Centre for Justice and Peace. The project is focused on Sudan.

The project will require editing, researching and re-writing a major report on prisons and human rights in Sudan, to be published by the African Centre for Justice and Peace Studies, probably in collaboration with REDRESS.

We are looking for 1 student to work on this project.

Student will be credited in report and there is a possibility of further research engagement with ACJPS.

Competencies: sound knowledge of applicable human rights law and good drafting skills; knowledge of human rights situation in Sudan desirable but not essential

Commitments: 5-10 hours per week depending on availability, with the initial draft for 11 January 2013 and the revised draft to be completed by 25 January 2013

Deadline: As soon as possible. Please email us at soas@banyan-advocates.co.uk before December 5^th with details of your availability and hours you can commit; please also attach a CV that includes information on your knowledge of the competencies, as cited above. 

PROJECT : Deighton Pierce Glynn legal case

In brief: Banyan has been asked Sue Willman, a partner at Deighton Pierce Glynn, to work on a case regarding a leading official in an Arabic speaking country. The CPS/DPP have been asked to prosecute the official for torture under universal jurisdiction. 

The project will support legal research/evidence review and collection to assemble a file to prese

nt to the CPS/police to support the investigation and prosecution. There is no legal aid/public funding for a private prosecution or work on preparing for a public prosecution and the exile community has limited access to finance.

That case explores interesting post Pinochet legal arguments about whether there is functional immunity for torture prosecution, and if so what level of official it should apply to as well as the extent of personal immunity. Students would be kept informed about the progress of this case and could attend the trial, should it proceed.
The final output for the documents will be in scanned, printable documents and clear, well-written and referenced research notes.

Some evidence has already been collected but further research, including internet research of materials in English and Arabic, is needed.

We are looking to build a team of 2 to 4 students to work on this project.

Competencies: At least one student at least should be able to read/translate Arabic documents. Interest and/or knowledge in the Arabic speaking world, universal jurisdiction and/or criminal procedure in the UK are desirable. Good organisational ability, reliability and research skills are essential. Excellent written English or Arabic is essential.

Commitments: 5-10 hours initial work per person reading into the case. 40-80hrs overall work for the group.

Initial notes of research by Christmas 2012, with an initial dossier by the end of February 2013 with the final dossier to be ready for March 2013.

Deadline: Please email us at soas@banyan-advocates.co.uk with details of your availability and hours you can commit; please also attach a CV that includes information on your knowledge of the competencies, as cited above.

Confidentiality: Confidentiality is highly important for this project, every participating student will have to sign a confidentiality agreement and be aware of the importance of utmost confidentiality during the entirety of the project cycle.

PROJECT: The Aegis Trust

THIS PROJECT IS NOW AT FULL CAPACITY

We will let you know if and when more people are required 

In brief: Banyan has been asked by the Aegis Trust to work on a project focused on Sudan and the ICC indictments as a case study to explore and provide recommendations as to what new or existing international structures or mechanisms are required to improve the implementation of international justice in relation to Sudan and the broader context of the African Union, ICC and individual states.

The final document produced will be a research report divided into thematic chapters including a literature review and and providing a chronology or summary of relevant international law, domestic legislation and decision making process (and policy positions of states) regarding Sudan and the ICC. Further information on the content of the report will be given to those on the project.

Aegis will consider publishing the report and will use the report to formulate policy recommendations for global advocacy and advocacy targeted at the UK government.

We are looking to build a team of 3 or 4 students to work on this project.

Competencies: Knowledge of international law, particularly international criminal law, human rights law and UN institutions.

Commitments: 15hrs per week over the course of 10 weeks. A draft report is to be completed by mid-January with a final report produced by mid-February. The Aegis trust will use the report for advocacy purposes from March 2013 onwards.

This comes down to an estimated 5hrs per student per week. (Please note that estimations can vary and that it also depends on your input and involvement on the project)

Deadline: As soon as possible. Please email us at soas@banyan-advocates.co.uk with details of your availability and hours you can commit; please also attach a CV that includes information on your knowledge of the competencies, as cited above. A ‘point of contact’ will be assigned based on competence and experience to co-ordinate the work. Quality control will be assured by Jo Henderson at the Aegis trust. 

Banyan is recruiting!

The recruitment is now complete, please see this post for further news

We are still recruiting for new committee members.

The deadline is Friday 16th November and all relevant information can be found in the link below.

Please get in touch with us if you have any further questions! 

Job Specification - Banyan Committee

Our Ethical Guidelines

When we began setting up Banyan, we soon realised that we had to elaborate on the sorts of projects that the network would take on. Broadly speaking, our projects will always have clear development, human rights or social advocacy goals. Such a description is fairly vague and all-encompassing, and thus we set about drafting the ethical guidelines we would follow when receiving project proposals.

By following the link below you will find these ethical guidelines.

Banyan: SOAS Advocates - Ethical Guidelines

For any further information on these guidelines, how projects can be proposed and the project cycle, please feel free to email us at soas@banyan-advocates.co.uk

Kiobel - A brief by John Ruggie

This link below leads to a poignant brief by John Ruggie in the case of Kiobel v Royal Dutch Petroleum (with thanks to Allison for sourcing this for us).

Kiobel and Corporate Social Responsibility - An Issues Brief by John G. Ruggie (04/09/2012)

Project - The Revenue Watch Institute

Banyan has been asked by the Revenue Watch Institute to support a technical assistance project to the government of Guinea (Conakry). The project focuses on reforms to the mining sector designed to promote good governance, compliance with the law, and an equitable sharing of benefits. 

We are looking to build a team of up to four students to support a multi-stakeholder committee in analysing the award of existing mining contracts. This will involve analysis and summaries of key terms of mining contracts; and in depth research into mining companies. Depending on the outcome of the work, there is scope for students to continue to work with RWI to develop contributions to the committee.

Competencies: Strong French reading and writing skills; legal analysis skills; basic knowledge of the mining sector and/or tax would be preferred

Commitments: Work has begun; if you can begin work before the end of August it would be a plus, but not essential. You will need to commit at least a total of 20 hours before the end of September.

Deadline: Applications taken on a rolling basis.

Application: If you're interested in working on this project, please email us at soas@banyan-advocates.co.uk with details of your availability and hours you can commit; please also attach a CV that includes information on your knowledge of French, legal analysis and mining and/or tax law.

Project - The MSI Project

THIS PROJECT IS NOW COMPLETED

We will have a blog update soon explaining the project and its results

Banyan has been asked by The MSI Project, an NGO affiliated with Harvard Law School, to assess and evaluate the human rights impacts of a number of multi-stakeholder initiatives (MSIs) such as, but not including, the Kimberley Process or the Fair Labour Association. 

We are looking to build a team of at least two students to evaluate two MSIs using an established methodology. This will involve working with an evaluation dataset and translating it into a written report. Depending on the outcome of the work, there is the possibility of separate or ongoing involvement in other aspects of the Project’s work, including advocacy and capacity-building with MSIs.

Competencies: Report-writing. Familiarity with international human rights or corporate accountability issues is preferable.

Commitments: 60 hours per person.Work needs to begin as soon as possible; the sooner you are able to commit the time the better.

Deadline: as soon as possible

Application: If you're interested in working on this project, please email us at soas@banyan-advocates.co.uk with details of your availability and hours you can commit; please also attach a CV.

The Kiobel Team

From left to right: Whitney Purdum ( MA Law, Development and Globalisation), Anjana Varma ( MA Law, Development and Globalisation), Luke Smitham (MA Law), Catherine Lancaster (MA International Law), Mary Johnson (LLM International Law), Allison Lindner (LLM) and Jessica Whelligan (MA Law)  

Deval Desai was unfortunately absent the day the picture was taken. 

Kiobel v Royal Dutch Petroleum Co. (Shell)

The Kiobel v Shell case sparked the creation of Banyan: SOAS advocates.

                       

In October 2011, Deval Desai, a research associate at SOAS, pulled together a group of postgraduate law students.These students would go on to perform extensive academic research in order to support an amicus curiae brief submitted by a group of eminent legal historians at the US Supreme Court. 

For further information on the case itself, we recommend this article by Peter Weiss on the Guardian Website.

The SOAS students involved were tasked with researching material regarding the period in which the Alien Tort Statute 1789 was created. What did the US government of the time mean by corporations? What were the proposed implications of such a wide ranging law? How did other governments of the time view extra-territorial jurisdiction?

All of these questions would be addressed by different research teams.

Some were sent to the Lloyds archives at the Guildhall Library Archives to search through insurance claims of ships seized or lost abroad. Their task was to determine how and when such situations were dealt with by English courts in foreign lands.

Other teams were dispatched to the British Library, London Metropolitan Archives and the National Archives at Kew.

Their tasks were to determine what a corporation was in 1789, how extra territorial jurisdiction was considered (by the British government especially), how the ‘corporations’ of the time such as the East India Company and South Sea Company were treated when they committed torts overseas and finally how the Law of Nations in 1789 would have viewed the extent of a law such as the Alien Tort Statute.

Further research led us to the Senate House Goldsmiths’ Library of Economic Literature as well as extensive online research of digitized law reports from the 18^th and 19^th centuries.

The outcome of research was forwarded to a team at the Harvard Human Rights Clinic, in charge of drafting the amicus curiae brief. A copy of this brief can be found here.

The Kiobel v Shell case is being reheard in the new term of the Supreme Court (see further information here.) Students have continued working toward the new hearing and their work has been recognized as truly invaluable.

Other than a decisive assistance in the Kiobel case, the work conducted on the Kiobel case led to the creation of Banyan: SOAS advocates.

We at Banyan are going to grow beyond the Kiobel case to supporting projects from many third party organizations. The Kiobel case merely shows a small aspect of what we can organise and what can do to assist projects. 

It also illustrates our determination to pursue our goals as laid out in our mission statement, to assist worthy human rights, social advocacy and development orientated projects, in every way a group of hardworking, versatile and skilled postgraduate students can.  
__

Luke

Banyan: SOAS Advocates – An Introduction

Approach

Banyan: SOAS Advocates is a student-run network of postgraduate students studying at SOAS, University of London. Banyan mobilises these students to offer pro bono legal and policy research as well as drafting skills to interested third parties looking to collaborate on projects that have clear development, human rights or social justice advocacy goals. 

The society responds to requests from organisations such as civil society actors, law firms and development organizations: for example, it has recently supported a group of eminent legal historians in drafting a brief to the US Supreme Court in the case of Kiobel, concerning alleged corporate human rights abuses.

Proposals

Banyan operates as a network. Proposals from third parties are circulated amongst its members, and a shortlist is drawn up by the Banyan committee from those who express interest, based on skills and available time. The committee then work with the organisation to finalise the team.

In order to draw together the most effective team, it is helpful to have a clear indication of the substance of work, an estimate of time required, hard and soft deadlines (such as court dates and internal review dates), skills required and desired outputs. If the organisation would like a member of staff to act as quality control on a specific project, that can be explored but may not be possible.

Process

Once the team is agreed on, the team and organisation work together directly to manage the process and to produce and take responsibility for outputs. The committee will keep an overall eye on the running of the projects, and can reach out to the network to draw on additional resources if needed.

 

If any further information is required, please contact Banyan: SOAS Advocates at soas@banyan-advocates.co.uk
__

Deval, Jess and Luke - Banyan: SOAS Advocates