Legal Struggles Between Managerialism and Authoritarianism: Contesting European Supply Chain Regulation

Abstract Legal struggles unfold when conflicts enter the legal arena and are processed within the framework of the legal form. Traditionally, such battles require a framework in which the pillars of the rule of law guarantee the interpretation and implementation of laws enacted through a democratic process. Currently, this dynamic is changing. Amid growing authoritarian tendencies, legal institutions are under attack. This situation threatens not only national civil and political rights but also the ability to legally contest labour and human rights violations in the global economy. By reconstructing the long-standing debate and controversies on supply chain regulation, we show how these frameworks face renewed threats from right-wing political shifts: Both the German Supply Chain Due Diligence Act and the European Union Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive are under pressure to be dismantled through legislative manoeuvres under the guise of bureaucracy reduction. Our article also examines three concrete legal struggles that have been carried out since the implementation of the German law, providing insight into how these have taken place before and after the implementation of this regulatory framework.