In response to supply chain sustainability challenges, companies have instituted ‘ethical’ audit programs during the past two decades to mitigate risks linked to procurement from suppliers with inadequate standards. Nonetheless, voluntary interventions have been insufficient in averting significant environmental degradation and human rights violations, resulting in an increasing agreement among researchers and politicians that legally obligatory rules are essential for ensuring compliance. This article reviews significant sustainability rules, including the Basel Convention, Stockholm Convention, and more current frameworks such as the CS3D and LkSG. This analysis contrasts their breadth, enforcement methods, and effects on supply chain sustainability, while exploring future trends in sustainability governance and the increasing legal and ethical obligations of firms in managing global supply networks.