Access to Justice and Corporate Accountability: A Legal Case Study of HudBay in Guatemala

This case study looks at the avenues open for addressing serious allegations of murder, rape and assault brought by indigenous Guatemalans against a Canadian mining company, HudBay Minerals. While first-generation legal and development policy reforms have facilitated foreign mining in Guatemala, second-generation reforms have failed to address effectively conflicts arising from the development projects. The judicial mechanisms available in Guatemala are difficult to access and suffer from problems of corruption and intimidation. Relevant corporate social responsibility policies and mechanisms lack the necessary enforcement powers. Canadian courts have been reluctant to permit lawsuits against Canadian parent companies; however, in Choc v. HudBay and Yaiguaje v. Chevron Corporation, Ontario judges have allowed cases to proceed on the merits of the case, providing an important, if limited, avenue toward corporate accountability

Accountability Across Borders: Mining in Guatemala and the Canadian Justice System

This paper has been updated and revised and is now available on ssrn as: Access to Justice and Corporate Accountability: A Legal Case Study of HudBay in Guatemala http://ssrn.com/abstract=2358981

‘You Don’t Have to Speak German to Work on the German Law Journal’: Reflections on Being a Student Editor While Being a Law Student

By taking a backstage look at our experiences as student editors on the German Law Journal, we reflect on what being a student editor can add to a legal education. In order to rebut criticisms of student participation on law journals, we first argue that being a student editor provides students with invaluable skills and experiences that cannot be replicated it the classroom. Working on a journal not only allows students to refine their editing and research skills, but compels students to connect the technical knowledge learned in class with an understanding of the complexities and legacy of law as a project and a discipline. Secondly, we canvas the different forms of journal organization and student participation on law journals in different countries and argue that critics of student participation have ignored this wide spectrum. We conclude that just as the German Law Journal benefits from the involvement of English speaking student editors, new to European and international law, legal publications are far richer and more insightful the more they involve of fresh minds

Access to Justice and Corporate Accountability: A Legal Case Study of HudBay in Guatemala

This case study looks at the avenues open for addressing serious allegations of murder, rape and assault brought by indigenous Guatemalans against a Canadian mining company. While first generation law and development reforms have facilitated foreign mining in Guatemala, “second generation” reforms have not yet provided a meaningful way of addressing conflicts arising from the development projects. The judicial mechanisms available in Guatemala are difficult to access and suffer from problems of corruption and intimidation. The corporate social responsibility mechanisms applicable to the mining company cannot provide enforceable orders. Canadian courts have been reluctant to permit law suits against Canadian parent companies. However, in Choc v. HudBay, an Ontario judge has allowed a case to proceed to a full trial on the merits of the case, providing an important, albeit limited, avenue for corporate accountability

Goldcorp and Hudbay Minerals in Guatemala (2010 update)

Canadian mining in Guatemala has been associated with violence and death. Opposition to an INCO mine in the El Estor region in the 1960’s resulted in the assassination of two law professors, and another activist has been killed in 2009. In the San Marcos region of Guatemala, two deaths are associated with the opening of a mine now owned by Goldcorp. Indigenous opposition to the mines continues in both regions. This article updates an article originally published in 2007which ties the events in Guatemala to efforts in Canada to hold Canadian mining companies accountable.Parts of this article dealing with HudBay and El Estor have been superceded by a 2012 article, Accountability Across Borders which is also found on SSRN in the CLPE series

El Sistema Judicial Canadiense Y La Empresa Minera Hudbay En Guatemala (The Canadian Justice System and Hudbay Minerals in Guatemala)

The English version of this article is available at: http://ssrn.com/abstract=2143679El presente es un estudio sobre la explotación minera en la región de El Estor, en Guatemala. Empresas mineras canadienses han operado en esta región desde los años 1960, cuando comunidades locales fueron desplazadas para crear una mina de níquel a cielo abierto. Desde entonces la mina se ha visto asociada con asesinatos, desplazamientos forzosos y presuntas violaciones. En estos momentos hay tres procesos judiciales abiertos contra la empresa HudBay Minerals, relacionados con su propiedad sobre la mina entre 2008 y 2011. HudBay y los demandantes exponen versiones radicalmente diferentes acerca de los asesinatos y las presuntas violaciones ocurridos en ese período. Dada la violencia practicada en Guatemala contra los líderes comunitarios que manifiestan preocupaciones sobre la minería, argumentamos en este trabajo que las cortes canadienses deberían actuar para establecer si debe exigirse a la HudBay la responsabilidad que corresponda.This is a Spanish translation of “Accountability Across Borders: Mining in Guatemala and the Canadian Justice System”, a case study of mining in the El Estor region of Guatemala. Canadian mines have operated in the region since the 1960s when local communities were removed to create an open pit nickel mine. Since then, the mine has been associated with assassinations, forced removals and alleged rapes. There are now three law suits pending against HudBay Minerals relating to their ownership of the mine between 2008 and 2011. HudBay and the claimants have strikingly different versions of the events surrounding the murders and alleged rapes. Given the nature of violence in Guatemala against community leaders who express concerns with mining, we argue that courts in Canada should take responsibility for determining whether or not HudBay bears some responsibility

‘You Don’t Have to Speak German to Work on the German Law Journal’: Reflections on Being a Student Editor While Being a Law Student

By taking a backstage look at our experiences as student editors on the German Law Journal, we reflect on what being a student editor can add to a legal education. In order to rebut criticisms of student participation on law journals, we first argue that being a student editor provides students with invaluable skills and experiences that cannot be replicated it the classroom. Working on a journal not only allows students to refine their editing and research skills, but compels students to connect the technical knowledge learned in class with an understanding of the complexities and legacy of law as a project and a discipline. Secondly, we canvas the different forms of journal organization and student participation on law journals in different countries and argue that critics of student participation have ignored this wide spectrum. We conclude that just as the German Law Journal benefits from the involvement of English speaking student editors, new to European and international law, legal publications are far richer and more insightful the more they involve of fresh minds

Access to Justice and Corporate Accountability: A Legal Case Study of HudBay in Guatemala

This case study looks at the avenues open for addressing serious allegations of murder, rape and assault brought by indigenous Guatemalans against a Canadian mining company. While first generation law and development reforms have facilitated foreign mining in Guatemala, “second generation” reforms have not yet provided a meaningful way of addressing conflicts arising from the development projects. The judicial mechanisms available in Guatemala are difficult to access and suffer from problems of corruption and intimidation. The corporate social responsibility mechanisms applicable to the mining company cannot provide enforceable orders. Canadian courts have been reluctant to permit law suits against Canadian parent companies. However, in Choc v. HudBay, an Ontario judge has allowed a case to proceed to a full trial on the merits of the case, providing an important, albeit limited, avenue for corporate accountability

Accountability Across Borders: Mining in Guatemala and the Canadian Justice System

This paper has been updated and revised and is now available on ssrn as: Access to Justice and Corporate Accountability: A Legal Case Study of HudBay in Guatemala http://ssrn.com/abstract=2358981