Under California’s Proposition 65 (Prop 65), any business with 10 or more employees that manufactures, sells, or distributes any consumer product containing a listed substance in California – directly or indirectly – must label the product with a clear and reasonable warning. As such, understanding and complying with Prop 65, including the new regulations that became effective on August 30, … Continue Reading
The UK Government’s newly formed Office for Product Safety & Standards (OPSS) has introduced the first government-backed Code of Practice (the Code) for product safety recalls – PAS7100. The Code aims to provide producers and distributors with clearer guidance on how to prepare for and deal with product safety issues, and we would advise producers and … Continue Reading
Cracked iPhone screens. The consequence of the finger slipping, circus-like juggling, slow motion crashing down of the one device that keeps you connected like none other to the digital world. Apple has been trying to find a solution to this literal kink in the armor of the world’s most popular smartphone since its release close … Continue Reading
On October 27, 2017, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (“CPSC”) issued a final rule prohibiting children’s toys and child care articles that contain concentrations of more than 0.1 percent of certain phthalates. What’s Prohibited The final rule states children’s toys and child care articles containing concentrations of more than 0.1 percent of diisononyl phthalate … Continue Reading
Last week, we reported on the Restriction of Hazardous Substances Directive (RoHS) in the EU, which took effect in 2006 and restricts the use of toxic chemicals in electronics products. Although RoHS is an EU directive, we discussed that it has extraterritorial impacts on global supply chains in that the legislation requires electronics manufacturers to … Continue Reading
The Restriction of Hazardous Substances Directive (RoHS) (2002/95/EC and 2011/65/EU) was adopted by the European Union in February 2002, and took effect July 1, 2006, yet many in the electronics industry are still uncertain as to its scope and requirements. Sometimes called the “lead-free directive,” the purpose of RoHS is to reduce toxic electronic waste … Continue Reading
Following up on our previous post on the Trump administration’s renegotiation of NAFTA, the President has taken further steps towards his campaign theme of promoting American industry. On April 18, 2017, President Trump signed the “Buy American, Hire American” executive order. The White House release states the order was promulgated in response to a February 2017 … Continue Reading
Last week, Sarah Rathke spoke with Derek Handova for Talkin’ Cloud about the practice of “channel stuffing” in the supply chain. Channel stuffing is the practice of booking sales before items are actually sold at retail – and is often a form of fraud meant to increase a company’s apparent sales volumes. Channel stuffing happens in … Continue Reading
In January 2016, we wrote about a report issued by NGOs Amnesty International and African Resources Watch, revealing that most of the world’s cobalt supply – an integral ingredient for lithium batteries – comes from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and is mined using child labor. At that time, the major retailers of products … Continue Reading
In light of the recent report outlining the shocking working conditions in Myanmar garment factories, we look at how organisations considering investing in the region should react to reports such as this; the practicalities of investing in such an industry/region as well as the factors organisations should consider when entering into new supplier relationships to … Continue Reading
On February 8, 2017, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) issued its Due Diligence Guidance for Responsible Supply Chains in the Garment and Footwear Sector. The Guidance promotes a framework of actions that enterprises in this sector can use to address and reduce the negative human rights impacts of their business activities. It’s … Continue Reading
Previously we posted on a growing litigation trend in response to the use of trafficked labor in the Thai seafood industry and how we can expect a similar response with recent reports on Congolese mining practices for cobalt, which is used in batteries. In her article in the Bloomberg BNA Electronic Commerce & Law Report entitled, “Is Tech … Continue Reading
Recently, an online article caught our attention. Published on www.yarnsandfibers.com, the article is entitled, “Dutch Govt ensure sustainable garment production and textile supply chain,”. It discusses The Netherlands Government’s recent efforts to bring together textile industry participants, trade associations, and interested NGOs to work together to encourage sustainability efforts and good working conditions in that … Continue Reading
A few posts ago, we posted an article on H.R. 644, the Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act of 2015. As predicted, President Obama signed the Act into law last week, which gave us an opportunity to talk with Rebekah Mintzer of Corporate Counsel Magazine on an article about the Act that she was working on.… Continue Reading
Any day, President Obama is expected to sign into law H.B. 644, also called the Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act of 2015 – an act that may have far-reaching impacts on U.S. companies that use foreign suppliers. The Act allows the government to confiscate or turn away items being imported that it reasonably suspects were … Continue Reading
Previously (see here , here , and here ), we have reported on a growing litigation trend relating to supply chains for food procured by major U.S. manufacturers and retailers abroad. Namely, beginning in August 2015, plaintiffs’ class action lawyers began filing putative consumer class action lawsuits against major U.S. food manufacturers and retailers, alleging … Continue Reading
On January 5, 2016, President Obama kicked off the new year by issuing a “Fact Sheet” on interagency efforts to combat human trafficking that, among other things, describes the federal government’s efforts in the procurement and supply chain fields. … Continue Reading
In previous posts (here, here, and here), we discussed a litigation trend that began in September of this year: putative class action lawsuits against U.S. retailers based on alleged unethical practices in their supply chains. The first lawsuits asserted the presence of trafficked labor in the Thai and Indonesian shrimp and fishing industries, with complaints … Continue Reading
Today at Squire Patton Boggs’ Global Supply Chain Law Blog, we are featuring some recent work done by our Global Food and Beverage Practice, which actively monitors regulatory, policy, and case law developments in the food, beverage, and related sectors around the world. Recently, the group has published an update on food and beverage law … Continue Reading
Food trade between the U.S. and China is on the rise. According to the most recent statistics, China is the third largest exporter of food and agricultural products to the U.S., behind only Canada and Mexico. And, the U.S. is China’s biggest source of foreign food and agricultural products. Under the current state of trade, … Continue Reading
In some earlier posts (here and here), we discussed the new litigation trend in which plaintiffs are filing putative consumer class actions against manufacturers and retailers for failing to fully abide by their California Transparency in Supply Chains disclosure statements or their internal supplier policies. Well, as anyone following this story is likely aware, the … Continue Reading
Last week, we had the great honor of talking with Amy Stickel at Inside Counsel Magazine about the recently filed California lawsuits based on companies’ California Transparency in Supply Chain Disclosure Act statements and/or their internal supply chain policies. Previously, we’ve written about these lawsuits in this blog here and here. With Amy, we discussed how these lawsuits … Continue Reading
Last week, we posted about the newly-filed consumer class action against Costco in federal court in San Francisco, based on Costco’s disclosure under the California Transparency in Supply Chains Act. As we noted, this is the first case of its kind, in which plaintiffs’ lawyers are seeking injunctions, restitution and other damages for a putative … Continue Reading
In previous posts, we’ve talked about emerging legislation designed to increase visibility and transparency in supply chains to bring about desirable social ends. We’ve discussed, for instance, the California Transparency in Supply Chains Act and the UK Modern Slavery Act, both of which require companies to disclose their efforts to eradicate slavery from their supply … Continue Reading
