The tracker · French
The pioneering 2017 framework for mandatory vigilance, this law legally compels large French companies to actively prevent global human rights and environmental harms, backed by strict civil liability and a growing history of extraterritorial enforcement.
Paris court confirmed extraterritorial reach of the law in a March 2026 ruling on a foreign subsidiary; docket continues to grow.
In plain language
The French Duty of Vigilance Law mandates that large French companies publish and implement a comprehensive plan to identify and mitigate human rights and environmental risks across their global operations, subsidiaries, and supply chains. Unlike purely disclosure-based regulations, this law enforces strict accountability by allowing French courts to mandate plan corrections and award financial damages to victims of corporate inaction. Because the judiciary has firmly established that vague or generic plans are legally insufficient, covered companies are compelled to demand detailed, verifiable compliance data from their suppliers rather than accepting surface-level assurances. Furthermore, a landmark March 2026 judicial ruling confirmed the law's robust extraterritorial reach by holding a French parent company liable for harms caused by its foreign subsidiary, cementing the principle that legal responsibility extends well beyond France's domestic borders.
Obligations
The plan must include risk mapping, assessment procedures, mitigation actions, an alert mechanism, and monitoring of effectiveness.
Courts have confirmed the duty covers implementation in practice, not the mere publication of a document.
The alert mechanism must be developed in consultation with representative trade unions.
Timeline
Law adopted after constitutional review removed criminal fines
First wave of formal notices and lawsuits against energy retail and utility companies
La Poste ruling set the first detailed judicial standard for plan adequacy.
Paris Judicial Court held a French parent company liable for a foreign subsidiary's conduct for the first time, confirming the law's extraterritorial reach.
Docket of vigilance cases continues to grow at the Paris judicial court.
Changelog
Case law summary refreshed with recent Paris judicial court decisions.
Exposed export value at full application, across the ten tracked origins · Figures come from UN Comtrade. For each country we use what its buyer markets reported importing, rather than what the country itself reported exporting, because several tracked countries report to Comtrade late or not at all. Every share is measured against that country's exports to the nine regulated markets this index tracks, not against its total exports to the world, because no reliable world total exists for countries that under-report. European Union figures add up all twenty seven member states. The European product breakdown by chapter is estimated from the four largest importers, Germany, France, the Netherlands and Italy, and scaled up to the full twenty seven member total, so it captures which products dominate without understating any single one. · methodology
Sources
Coverage