Supplier Code of Conduct

Our commitment to responsible business

A&L Goodbody[1] is fundamentally committed to respect for human rights, working conditions, the environment, and anti-corruption. We want to partner with responsible suppliers who share these commitments.

Our expectations of suppliers

  • We expect our suppliers to honour their commitments to us. We expect them to treat us, our clients and other suppliers, and their own people and suppliers fairly, honestly and with respect.
  • Suppliers working in our premises or having access to our systems must observe our security and safety procedures. They must have adequate systems for managing risks to safety, health, the environment, and data. Suppliers must respect our obligations to clients and under professional conduct rules.
  • We expect our suppliers to operate their businesses responsibly. We also expect them to take appropriate steps to secure that their global supply chains are responsible, especially in connection with providing goods and services to us.
  • We expect all suppliers to (and to be able to demonstrate that they):
  • Make sure that their operations and workplaces are safe and avoid risk to health
  • Avoid complicity in human rights infringements
  • Make sure that workers’ pay, hours, working conditions, and other terms comply with the law and international conventions
  • Make sure that no forced, compulsory, bonded, trafficked, or involuntary labour is employed, and that workers are free to leave their employment on reasonable notice and are not required to lodge identity papers or pay deposits as a condition of work
  • Make sure that child labour is not employed so that all workers are of at least the minimum legal working age under international conventions
  • Make sure that workers have effective legal and contractual rights, freedom of association, right to collective bargaining, and disciplinary, grievance, and appeal procedures
  • Take steps to make sure that workers do not suffer any kind of discrimination, intimidation, bullying, harassment, or retaliation
  • Take a precautionary approach to adverse environmental impacts, taking steps to assess and minimise them, including greenhouse gas emissions
  • Avoid participation in corruption in any form, including extortion and bribery
  • Avoid participation in money laundering or terrorist financing.

We will work collaboratively with our suppliers in order to ensure that the expectations in this code of conduct are achieved both by us and our suppliers. We expect our suppliers to do the same.

We expect suppliers to carry out appropriate due diligence to show that they are meeting these obligations, both in regard to their own business operations and their supply chains, and to take appropriate steps to remedy any failures. We reserve the right to monitor supplier’s compliance with this code and we expect suppliers to be open with us about their compliance. We will work collaboratively with suppliers to assist with compliance.

[1] In this Supplier Code of Conduct Policy, references to A&L Goodbody includes A&L Goodbody LLP, A&L Goodbody Belfast and A&L Goodbody London