Business and Human Rights: Regulatory Advances in Brazil and the European Union

Abstract

The article analyzes the evolution of human rights protection in the business context, focusing on the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights as the foundation for the emergence of national and regional legislation that seeks to transform human rights protection into a legal obligation for large companies. In this scenario, a comparative analysis is carried out between Bill No. 572/2022, currently being debated in Brazil, and the European Union Directive on Corporate Sustainability and Human Rights Due Diligence (CSDDD), approved in 2024. The Brazilian bill proposes a regulatory framework for corporate accountability, expanding the requirement for due diligence and extending responsibility to the entire value chain, but it has gaps in terms of enforcement and applicability. The European Union's CSDDD, on the other hand, establishes clear rules, with specific monitoring and sanction requirements, but is limited by the high revenue threshold required for companies to be subject to it. The article highlights the impacts of the CSDDD in Brazil, especially for companies that are part of European corporations' supply chains. The research is qualitative, exploratory in nature, and based on a review of literature and documents. It concludes that the proliferation of national legislation on human rights and business is a significant advance that strengthens corporate responsibility and contributes to the standardization of global requirements for respect for human rights and the environment.