Laurel Bellows

The International Supply Chain Initiative provides guidance to multinational corporations with regard to anti-human trafficking and supply chain management. It is well known that human rights issues within supply chains have increasingly drawn the ire of legislators and members of the public alike, with disastrous incidents (such as the 2013 Rana Plaza collapse in Bangladesh) as well as increasing press coverage of related practices, serving to highlight ongoing problems within virtually all areas of the global marketplace. Driven by the demand for cheap goods, services and labor, companies have often looked for ways to increase production and decrease employment costs. This has led to problematic supply chain management practices, with multinational organizations turning to less desirable offshore labor forces that engage in such practices. Businesses which proactively work to adopt anti-trafficking and forced labor measures stand to benefit tremendously by “future proofing” their operations against regulations, as well as mitigating potential current and future liability and damages. Through our two-track offering, the International Supply Chain Initiative can not only assist your company in the creation of policy and training materials, but can also provide liability assessment and mitigation services with respect to anti-human trafficking initiatives. Your company will be provided with the ability to fulfill its legal obligations regarding anti-trafficking and supply chain management, while simultaneously demonstrating to consumers and global communities its standing as a responsible corporate citizen.

Laurel Bellows, founding principal of The Bellows Law Group, P.C., is past president of the nearly 400,000-member American Bar Association, past president of The Chicago Bar Association and serves on the Executive Committee of the InterAmerican Bar Association. Laurel is an internationally recognized business lawyer, counseling senior executives and corporations on executive employment and severance agreements, workplace disputes, business conduct standards, anti-trafficking risk assessment, supply chain and recruitment policies. Her law firm offers strategic counseling, transactional and litigation services to entrepreneurs and business of all sizes. Clients include corporations and individuals in the areas of executive compensation, workplace policies, Executive Employment and Separation Agreements, change in control Agreements and succession planning, employee incentive plans, talent and performance management. Laurel is licensed to practice in Illinois, Florida and California.