Up close with Legal Beagle Expert Speaker: Matt Friedman

Matt Friedman: Legal Beagle Speaker

Matt Friedman is the CEO of the Mekong Club and is an international human trafficking expert. He is one of our expert speakers presenting: Modern Slavery

Tell us about yourself:  What is your expertise, and how did you become an expert in the area?

For the past 30 years, I have been an international human trafficking expert working for USAID and the United Nations in over 40 countries. I am now the CEO of The Mekong Club, an organization of Hong Kong’s leading businesses which have joined forces to help end all forms of modern slavery. I regularly offer technical advice to numerous governments, banks and corporations working to eliminate all forms of modern slavery and am the author of twelve books. I have provided training to over 35,000 business professionals in 25 countries around the world on the topic of modern slavery.  I became aware of the issue of modern slavery in 1990 and have been addressing it ever since.

Online training in the legal industry is relatively new in Hong Kong – why did you take a chance and become a speaker for Legal Beagle?

As a leading online training platform, Legal Beagle has become an important repository of relevant information on a range of topics. Legal Beagle offers an opportunity to bring important topics to professionals that need this information to do their work and to protect their company.

Why is/are the topic(s) you speak on (featured on the Legal Beagle platform) so important?

Modern Slavery and Its Impacts Explained by Matt Friedman

Profits generated by modern slavery annually exceed US$150 billion. This places many businesses at risk including, retailers, manufacturers, banks and hotels. The best way to address these risks it to understand the problem and apply the practical tools outlined in the presentation.

Are there any articles you’d like to share that you have published online, or that would be helpful to lawyers taking your course?

• https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/hong-kong/article/2162813/ending-modern-slavery-business-possible-heres-how

• https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/united-states/article/3002456/end-modern-slavery-we-have-measure-it-and

• https://indvstrvs.com/disruption-to-global-supply-chains-a-boon-for-traffickers/