On November 5, a federal district court judge in California denied plaintiffs' motion for summary judgment in a facial challenge to California's climate disclosure laws. Although this ruling is relatively limited in...more
3 On November 8, the SEC and an investment advisor entered into a settlement to resolve an administrative proceeding featuring allegations of greenwashing. Specifically, the investment advisor was alleged to have made...more
Despite the recent disbandment of the SEC’s Climate & ESG Task Force, the SEC is continuing to pursue enforcement actions concerning environmental issues, including greenwashing. Notably, over the past several weeks, the SEC...more
On October 21, 2024, the SEC imposed a fine of $4 million on investment adviser WisdomTree Asset Management Inc. for improperly labeling certain funds as compliant with ESG principles. According to the settled administrative...more
Over the past several years, there have been more than three dozen lawsuits launched against the major fossil fuel companies seeking damages due to climate change caused by greenhouse gas emissions. These claims are based...more
This week, the Hawaii Supreme Court--in response to certified questions of law from the federal district court in Hawaii--held that the insurance policies purchased by fossil fuel companies in Hawaii would not provide...more
1 The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York recently launched a criminal prosecution in connection with “a scheme to commit fraud in the carbon markets,” specifically that a company and its executives...more
This summer, California Governor Newsom had proposed that California delay the implementation date of its climate disclosure law for two years. The California legislature rejected this proposal, instead passing S.B. 219,...more
Last month, a federal district court struck down Missouri's anti-ESG rules that would prohibit investment advisors from utilizing ESG factors when making investment decisions (absent written consent of the client). ...more
The Securities & Exchange Commission has disbanded its Climate & ESG Task Force, which had been launched with great fanfare in March 2021 at the beginning of the Biden administration. However, the Climate & ESG Task Force had...more
On September 25, 2024, the federal district court in Minnesota denied Target Corp.'s motion to dismiss a consumer-fraud action against it featuring claims that a class of consumers were “deliberately misled [] by [Target]...more
Over the past couple of weeks, there have been a pair of greenwashing lawsuits filed--by both private plaintiffs and government regulators--that highlight the current focus on consumer products as a centerpiece of...more
On September 1, 2021, the State of Texas enacted a law (SB 13) that constitutes one of the most far-reaching anti-ESG laws among the various states. It bars state institutions from investing in companies that “boycott”...more
Recently, Governor Newsom proposed that California delay the implementation of its recently-enacted climate disclosure laws for two years. The California legislature has effectively rejected this proposal by passing S.B....more
It has been reported that the Securities & Exchange Commission has disbanded its Climate & ESG Task Force. This same task force had been launched with great fanfare in March 2021, at the beginning of the Biden...more
Congressional Democrats have been exerting pressure on insurance regulators to integrate climate-related financial risks as part of their supervisory role; a letter was recently sent by Democratic members of the House and...more
Companies in Australia will soon have to abide by a set of significant climate disclosures aligned with the International Sustainability Standards Board guidelines. These disclosures, which will impose significant compliance...more
As of June 2024, Canada added certain provisions to its Competition Act that explicitly target the practice of greenwashing. In particular, according to the Canadian Competition Bureau, these amendments: (1) “requir[e] that...more
Last week, the Dutch central bank released a study that concluded that “[s]ince 2020, a clear price difference has emerged between the costs of borrowing for companies with relatively high carbon emissions and those with...more
Yesterday, Judge Bough (W.D. Mo.) issued a decision barring the recent anti-ESG rules Missouri had promulgated that prohibited investment advisers from utilizing ESG factors when making investment decisions (absent written...more
8/16/2024
/ Asset Management ,
Bars ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Fourteenth Amendment ,
Investment ,
Investment Adviser ,
NSMIA ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
SIFMA ,
Written Consent
On June 24, the State of Hawaii entered into a settlement agreement with a group of thirteen plaintiffs, all minor children, concerning the impact of climate change and the efforts the State of Hawaii would make to reduce its...more
On August 12, 2024, three Congressional Democrats (Casten (D-IL); Waters (D-CA); and Senator Whitehouse (D-RI)) sent a letter to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC), inquiring as to “the status of the...more
Earlier this year, the SEC issued its long-awaited regulation concerning mandatory climate disclosures. As expected, this climate disclosure rule was immediately challenged in the courts by, among others, conservative states...more
A couple of weeks ago, a lawsuit brought by the State of Connecticut against a major fossil fuel company, alleging various violations of the consumer protection laws in Connecticut (specifically, the Connecticut Unfair Trade...more
About a month ago, one of the myriad climate change tort lawsuits brought by state and local governments against major fossil fuel producers was dismissed by a state court judge in Baltimore, Maryland. (These lawsuits have...more