Responsive Law for Global Value Chains

Introduction

CHAINLAW will develop a novel conceptual and normative legal language for Global Value Chains (GVCs). GVCs are the interconnected trade structures that underlie the production of commodities and the offering of services. While GVCs have been intensively theorized in the social sciences, they are largely unknown as legal categories. This is highly problematic when the law is starting to legislate or decide cases about supply-chain responsibility.

Core Aim

The core aim of CHAINLAW is to provide the concepts necessary for law to be able to develop appropriate and effective legislation for GVCs and appropriate approaches to supply-chain liability.

Methodology

CHAINLAW will achieve this through a combination of:

1. Theoretical analysis
2. Doctrinal analysis
3. Empirical analysis
4. Technical analysis
5. Normative analysis on the law of GVCs

Theoretical Framework

To that end, CHAINLAW is groundbreaking by employing a novel theoretical framework based on institutional theory. This framework sets up a threefold typology of GVCs, allowing their qualifications as part of the company, contracts, and as a network simultaneously.

Multi-Disciplinary Descriptive Analysis

CHAINLAW engages in a multi-disciplinary descriptive analysis that traces this institutional understanding within various regulatory layers that govern GVCs. These layers include:

• Formal law
• Private regulation
• Technological regulation in GVCs

Integrated Legal Analysis

It proposes an analysis of the law on GVCs that integrates:

1. Legal doctrinal analysis of company and contract law and the legal debate on networks
2. Socio-legal research on private regulatory documents set up by companies, contracting parties, and within the GVC network
3. Socio-technical analysis of supply-chain technologies used by companies, commercial parties, and in networked processes

Responsive Governance Strategy

Finally, CHAINLAW uses these insights to develop a strategy for how the law can responsively govern GVCs, including:

• Private law, such as liability
• Public law intervention

Such responsive law needs to integrate the different institutional dimensions of GVCs and address the various regulatory layers in GVCs.