At the time when the Norse people surfaced from the dark depths of history there was only one source of law: Custom. Save for a few reflections from Canon Law even the Provincial Laws such as the Vestrogoth Code and the Ostrogoth Code only represented the custom of the land, reduced to memorable form and later to writing.

The Code of Civil Procedure contains provisions by which aliens do not have the rights in civil legal cases which are accorded to Dutch nationals. An alien, who is a plaintiff in a court case, may be obliged to put up security for the costs. With a few exceptions, aliens generally have no right to cost free access or to free legal assistance. The subject of the cautio and cost free access and free legal assistance have been given a great deal of attention in recent years from various quarters. In an international context the Council of Europe and the Hague Conference on Private International Law paid attention to these legal concepts. In a national context the Minister of Justice presented a bill to the Second Chamber and published a draft, containing proposals for a new edition of the above-mentioned articles. I will first deal with activities in the Netherlands and then go on to discuss what has been happening in an international context. However, before I do this, a short description of the Dutch provisions concerned with the legal aspects in question is needed for a proper understanding of the subject.

Multinational Enterprises (MNE's) are confronted with a growing number of Codes of Conduct. So far these Codes are all of a so-called voluntary character and not legally binding. Nevertheless the MNE's – also referred to as transnational corporations (TNC's) – are increasingly confronted with the rules of conduct expressed in these Codes. It is a subject area which is still in its early stage and developing constantly.