6 - The Justification for and Contours of a Multi-Factoral Approach

Summary

The analysis in the last chapters reveals a convergence across the various models and jurisdictions considered in addressing the ‘substantive content’ of the obligations of non-state actors. This chapter attempts to describe and systematise what emerges from these judgments into an analytical framework which I term the ‘multi-factoral approach’. An optimal articulation of this approach, I argue, requires a series of steps, three of which I seek to accomplish in this chapter: namely, identifying the various factors at play in a situation; examining their normative grounding and understanding their relevance to the imposition of corporate obligations; and, developing presumptive principles, that help us understand their implications for corporate obligations. I identify and explore the relevance and weight to be accorded to three beneficiary-orientated factors (interests, vulnerability and impact) as well as three agent-relative factors (capacity, function and autonomy). This chapter also shows that none of these factors is alone sufficient to determine corporate obligations.