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Washington DC - 23 February

In collaboration with New Perimeter, an affiliated nonprofit organization of DLA Piper, SMI is pleased to announce the launch of its policy paper ‘Can you get sued? Legal liability of international humanitarian aid agencies towards their staff’, by Edward Kemp and Maarten Merkelbach.

The aid and development sector’s risk and security management is subject to the same basic legal ground rules and responsibilities as any other enterprise. These are mandatory, not optional. It is not only an operational issue; it is a governance issue. NGOs undertaking risk and security management need to take this into account. In cooperation with A4ID (UK) and DLA Piper in the USA, SMI worked with lawyers and non-profit organizations in several countries to develop a common standard and process for analysis to be applied by international organizations seeking to meet their legal obligations in looking after their staff.

The launch event will take place at DLA Piper’s Washington DC office  and will be followed by a reception.

 

  • Register for the Washington DC launch.
  • View the invitation and event details.
 
Interviews
On 30 November 2011 SMI launched a report in collaboration with A4ID: "Can you get sued? Legal liability of international humanitarian aid agencies towards their staff." The launch was hosted by CMS CameronMcKenna in London, and was attended by professionals from aid agencies and NGO's.
 
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A4ID CEO, Yasmin Batliwala, gives some introductory remarks.
 
 
A new report launched by Security Management Initiative (SMI) and A4ID considers the legal obligations international aid agencies have to consider in looking after their staff.
 
The report, ‘Can you get sued? Legal liability of international humanitarian aid agencies towards their staff,’ is the result of an SMI research project that looked at current practice in the aid sector and, in cooperation with A4ID, legal reviews undertaken by law firms in five countries for the project.
 
The report considers the duty of care of humanitarian organisations as a legal term with corresponding legal responsibilities. Since safety and security include legal obligations, this report argues that, while due safety and security may be viewed as matters of choice or conscience, they must also answer to objective laws, regulations, standards and norms that can be objectively evaluated, are open to scrutiny, and can be enforced.
 
The study is the result of work with lawyers, non-profit organisations and donors around the world to develop a common standard and process for analysis to be applied by international organisations seeking to meet their legal obligations in looking after their staff.
 
After the talk, Jonathan Potter from People In Aid and Christine Williamson from Save the Children UK reacted to the paper and what it means in practice for aid agencies. Interview with Jonathan Potter and Christine Williamson
 
 
More about how the report was initiated and what implications it has for the humanitarian aid industry, watch the Interview with Maarten Merkelbach and Edward Kemp co-authors of 'Can you get sued?'
 
 
For more information about the launch please visit this page: http://a4id.org/story/can-you-get-sued