The UIA organises the 9th International Jacques Leroy Prize - Modern Day Slavery
The UIA encourages lawyers of less than 35 years of age to participate in this prize rewarding a research about Modern Day Slavery.
How can we put an end to Modern Day Slavery?
Recent reports on multinationals by prominent media outlets have brought to light evidence of modern slavery within their supply chains.
These revelations have had an extremely negative impact upon the reputations of these corporations. The clear aim of these exposés on forced labour within supply chains across a number of sectors, taken together with the implementation of new legislation such as the UK Modern Slavery Act and the California Transparency in Supply Chains Act is to improve the transparency within the supply chains of large corporations.
Several strong messages have been sent to corporations. The legislation creates transparency obligations for corporations which are vital in enabling victims to assess the possibility of bringing legal action.
However, across a number of jurisdictions, the implementation of the regulations on transparency is not underpinned by a legal framework and the failure to adopt measures which create a right of recourse for victims represent obstacles to genuine progress in this arena.
What mechanisms presently exist to enable victims of modern slavery to access remedies? What steps can human rights defenders take to assist victims of modern slavery in asserting their rights where national legislation does not provide any clear and practical remedies for victims? Do strategic and creative forms of litigation by pro-human rights NGOs and legal action by victims represent the only means of encouraging corporations to act more responsibly and obtain redress for victims?
Lawyers who wish to participate in the prize must send us a written entry (trial argument, dissertation, study or commentary on a practical case, based on a solid legal line of reasoning) between 15,000 and 20,000 characters (including spaces). Please send your documents via postal mail (
20 rue Drouot, 75009 Paris-France) or by e-mail (
uiacentre@uianet.org) before
July 31, 2018.
The documents may be written in English, French or Spanish.
The winner will be rewarded with free registration for the 2018 Porto–Portugal Congress from October 27-31, a cash prize of € 1,000 and a year’s free membership in the UIA.