This Practice Note sets out the impact of human rights law on public children proceedings, specifically art 6 (right to a fair trial) and art 8 (right to respect for private and family life) of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), incorporated into domestic law by the Human Rights Act 1998 (HRA 1998) as a Schedule. It also provides guidance on human rights considerations in cases where a family member is unaware of the existence of a child, the relevance of human rights as to local authority decision making and remedies for breaches. Public children proceedings must be conducted in accordance with the human rights provisions and any order sought must be ‘lawful and proportionate’. Regard must be had to HRA 1998 both in and out of court. HRA 1998 must not however be used to bolster weak cases, see: General principles. Human rights issues should be identified at the outset and dealt with as part of the court's case management of the proceedings. In Re L (Care Proceedings: Human Rights Claims),

Business and human rights is a developing area. Not only did the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs) receive unanimous approval from the Human Rights Council; the increasing importance of this field is reflected in growing reporting requirements being imposed on certain companies across jurisdictions and tied up with environmental, social and governance (ESG) developments. For more information, see Practice Notes: ESG—new starter guide, Sustainable business and environmental, social, governance (ESG)—introduction for companies and advisors and Business and human rights—core responsibility under the UNGPs. Why should lawyers be aware of developments in human rights reporting? Lawyers should remain on top of existing and incoming legal requirements in relation to human rights for the following reasons including: • helping clients prepare their human rights statements to be incorporated in their annual statements • understanding what information is commercially sensitive and should not be disclosed • being aware of the changed stakeholder expectations where it comes to how companies should communicate about their management of human rights risks As business, human rights and the UNGPs

1 Our commitment to human rights [[Insert organisation name] is a signatory to [insert details of any human rights initiatives to which the organisation is a signatory, eg the United Nations Global Compact or the Equator Principles]. ]We are committed to supporting and respecting all internationally recognised human rights. We also seek to ensure we are not complicit in human rights abuses by any other person, organisation or government. 2 What are human rights? 2.1 According to the United Nations, human rights are rights inherent to all human beings, irrespective of nationality, place of residence, sex, national or ethnic origin, colour, religion, language, or any other status. We are all equally entitled to our human rights without discrimination. 2.2 When we refer in this policy to ‘internationally recognised human rights’, we mean the rights set out in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the International

[[[Insert firm name] is a signatory to the [insert details of any human rights initiatives to which the firm is a signatory, eg the United Nations Global Compact]. ]]We are committed to supporting and respecting all internationally recognised human rights. We also seek to ensure we are not complicit in human rights abuses by any other person, organisation or government. 1 What are human rights? 1.1 The United Nations describes human rights as rights inherent to all human beings, irrespective of nationality, place of residence, sex, national or ethnic origin, colour, religion, language, or any other status. We are all equally entitled to our human rights without discrimination. 1.2 When we refer in this policy to ‘internationally recognised human rights’, we mean the rights set out in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and the International

[[Insert organisation name] is a signatory to the [insert details of any human rights initiatives to which the organisation is a signatory, eg the United Nations Global Compact, or the Equator Principles].] We are committed to supporting and respecting all internationally recognised human rights. We also seek to ensure we are not complicit in human rights abuses by any other

[[Insert firm name] is a signatory to the [insert details of any human rights initiatives to which the organisation is a signatory, eg the United Nations Global Compact]. ]We are committed to supporting and respecting all internationally recognised human rights. We also seek to ensure we are not complicit in human rights abuses by any other person, organisation or government. We aim to ensure that where applicable national laws differ from

Human trafficking refers in practice to the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harbouring or receipt of persons through coercion, deception, abuse of vulnerability or other improper means for the purpose of exploitation, such as sexual exploitation, forced labour, slavery‑like practices, criminal exploitation or organ removal. In England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, it is principally addressed under the Modern Slavery Act 2015 (and earlier offences such as trafficking for sexual exploitation), while in Ireland it is criminalised under the Criminal Law (Human Trafficking) Acts 2008–2013. The concept is aligned with international instruments, notably the Palermo Protocol and the Council of Europe Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings. Key legal features include: an act (recruitment etc.), means (force, threats, deception, abuse of power or vulnerability) and exploitative purpose. For child victims, the “means” element is not required. Human trafficking is central to prosecutions, confiscation and restraint proceedings, victim identification, non‑punishment of trafficked persons for compelled offending, immigration and asylum claims, compensation, and safeguarding duties. Usage and core elements are broadly consistent across the UK and Ireland, though statutory drafting and offence labelling differ.

What is human trafficking? The accepted definition is found in the UN Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children, supplementing the UN Convention against Transnational Organisational Crime: 'The recruitment, transportation, transfer, harbouring or receipt of persons, by means of the threat or use of force or other forms of coercion, of abduction, of fraud, of deception, of the abuse of power, or a position of vulnerability, or the giving or receiving of payments or benefits to achieve the consent of a person having control over another person, for the purpose of exploitation. Exploitation shall include, at a minimum, the exploitation of the prostitution of others or other forms of sexual exploitation, forced labour or services, slavery or practices similar to slavery, servitude or the removal or organs.' Human trafficking is the movement of a person from one place to another into conditions of exploitation, using deception, coercion, the abuse of power or the abuse of someone’s vulnerability. It may be cross-border or may occur within the UK. The

Corporate Crime analysis: Lucy Mair, barrister at Garden Court North Chambers, examines the Administrative Court’s decision to quash the defendant’s conclusion that the claimant was not a victim of human trafficking. The court found for the claimant on grounds regarding her credibility and the correct definition of forced labour in a domestic setting for the purposes of human trafficking.

1. What is the applicable legislation? The applicable legislation on the control of foreign investments in Hungary is Act LVII of 2018 on the Supervision of Foreign Investments Violating the National Security Interests of Hungary (the 2018 Act) and the related implementation decree, Government Decree 246/2018 (XII.17) (the 2018 Governmental Decree), which came into force on 1 January 2019. Additionally, control measures for foreign investments also apply in Hungary pursuant to Act L of 2025 on the elevation of the emergency decrees issued in response to the armed conflict in Ukraine to the level of an act (the 2025 Act). The provisions of this FDI regime were originally introduced as temporary measures aiming to protect Hungarian companies in the COVID-19 situation and were incorporated in various government decrees; however, they are still in force, now until 31 December 2026, currently being regulated in the 2025 Act. Currently, the two FDI regimes exist in parallel in Hungary. It is possible that a transaction could fall within scope of both the 2018 Act and the 2025 Act, requiring

This table summarises all completed investigations by Hungary’s competition authority (the Gasdasagi Versenyhivatal—GVH)) into alleged cartels, anti-competitive agreements and abuses of dominant positions (Articles 101/102 TFEU and national equivalents) since 2018. Note—only investigations that have been made public are included in this table. 2026 Investigations under Article 101 TFEU/Article 11 of the Hungarian Competition Act Case name, companies under investigation and industry Issues Developments Hair cosmetics• Hair-Line Restrictive agreements—RPM •Infringement decision issued—07/08/2026; fines totalling HUF 68m imposed Soft drinks• Maspex Olympos Restrictive agreements—RPM • Infringement decision issued—05/06/2026; fines totalling HUF 335.95m imposed Investigations under Article 102 TFEU/Article 21 of the Hungarian Competition Act We are not aware of any ongoing investigations under Article 21 in 2026 2025 Investigations under Article 101 TFEU/Article 11 of the Hungarian Competition Act Case name, companies under investigation and industry Issues Developments Garbage trucks and sewer cleaning vehicles• Volvo Hungária Kereskedelmi • MUT Kft• Seres Gépipari Kereskedelmi • Interteher• He Hans Eibinger• Eurotrade Kft• GIF Modul Restrictive agreements—bid rigging • Infringement decision—05/12/2025; fines totalling HUF 1.3bn imposed Lighting distribution• Lutec Restrictive agreements—RPM • Infringement

NOTE—to see whether notification thresholds in Hungary and throughout the world are met, see further: Where to Notify. 1. Have there been any recent developments regarding the Hungarian merger control regime and are any updates/developments expected in the coming year? Are there any other ‘hot’ merger control issues in Hungary? The last major overhaul of the Hungarian Competition Act (Competition Act) took place in 2023, following a series of amendments that entered into force on 1 January, 1 February, and 1 September 2023. These amendments introduced several key changes, including the following: • increased notification thresholds • the possibility for voluntary notification of below-threshold transactions, with the Hungarian Competition Authority (GVH) empowered to investigate such transactions within six months of closing • an increase in the daily maximum fine for early implementation (gun jumping) • higher maximum fines for the implementation of prohibited transactions, breaches of conditions or obligations imposed by the GVH, and for providing misleading information, and • an increase in notification fees, which were further raised in January 2025 The maximum