Lafarge trial: Multinational companies ‘enjoying impunity, prioritising profits over human rights’

It is one of the most consequential legal proceedings in modern corporate history — a trial that could redefine what accountability means in the global economy. The Lafarge case, now before French courts, marks the first time a company as a legal entity is being prosecuted in France for financing a terrorist enterprise. Even more striking, it is the first case where a corporation faces this charge for payments made through a foreign subsidiary. At its heart lies a question that has haunted global business for decades: can a multinational corporation claim ignorance of crimes committed in its own supply chain, or by its own subsidiaries, when the profits keep flowing home? For in-depth analysis and a deeper perspective, Annette Young welcomes Cannelle Lavite, Co-Program Director for Business and Human Rights at the European Center for Constitutional and Human Rights.