Big Business - International Law / Are companies above the law?

TimCan anything be done to stop a multinational company that wants to abuse your rights?

In this episode, we'll show you how international law keeps the world's biggest companies in line.

Coming up: Nike's big ticking off...

A sweet victory for Cadbury's workers...

And how Shell's oil spills in Africa are dealt with in UK courts...

First up: is the law strong enough to stop companies breaking it?

Sometimes companies take it on themselves to look after their workers well.

Chocolate makers Cadbury have sometimes been praised for actively improving the lives of their plantation workers something called Corporate Social Responsibility, or CSR.

But, without an international legal body to enforce rules, what can be done when companies don't choose to behave well? Time for some clever legal work.

On the early 2000s, Nike denied claims its workers were being mistreated in foreign factories. A man called Mark Kasky took Nike to court, using American advertising laws forbidding companies from making 'false and misleading' claims over those denials.