On November 30, 2023, the first day of COP28, nearly 190 countries finalized the terms for the framework of a loss and damage fund to assist developing countries to respond to harms caused by climate change. The fund was...more
An Austrian regional court found Austrian Airlines AG (AUA), a subsidiary of German airline Lufthansa, liable for greenwashing for advertisements offering carbon-neutral flights that used 100% sustainable aviation fuel (SAF),...more
11/28/2023
/ Airlines ,
Austria ,
Aviation Industry ,
Climate Action Plan ,
Climate Change ,
Corporate Governance ,
Corporate Social Responsibility ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
False Advertising ,
Greenwashing ,
Marketing ,
Misrepresentation ,
Net Zero ,
Sustainable Business Practices
At a September legal conference convened by the European Central Bank (ECB), Frank Elderson, a member of the ECB’s executive board and vice-chair of its supervisory board, observed the increasing risk of climate lawsuits and...more
On September 21, 2023, a Texas federal court dismissed an action commenced by more than two dozen Republican state attorneys general challenging a 2022 Department of Labor (DOL) Rule that addressed consideration of ESG...more
11/8/2023
/ Administrative Procedure Act ,
Climate Action Plan ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Management ,
Investment Opportunities ,
Retirement Plan
On September 4, 2023, the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee on Plastic Pollution (INCPP) released a draft proposal on the reduction of global plastic pollution. The so-called “Zero Draft” proposes measures to address...more
In August 2023, American Airlines, Inc. moved to dismiss a class action lawsuit filed against the airline for allegedly jeopardizing employees’ retirement savings by investing in environmental, social and governance (ESG)...more
10/25/2023
/ 401k ,
American Airlines ,
BlackRock ,
Class Action ,
Climate Action Plan ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Investment Funds ,
Investment Management ,
Investment Opportunities ,
Motion to Dismiss ,
Retirement Plan
The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA), Hong Kong’s de facto central banking institution, issued a directive for banks setting out high-level principles on planning for a transition to a net-zero economy. In a “Dear CEO”...more
10/17/2023
/ Banks ,
Business Strategies ,
Climate Action Plan ,
Climate Change ,
Corporate Governance ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Hong Kong ,
Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) ,
Net Zero ,
Transparency
In a report published in August 2023, non-profit disclosure organization CDP concluded that financial institutions often are not accounting for nature-related risks and opportunities in their “financial decision-making,” and...more
On September 8, 2023, the United Nations published its first Global Stocktake report on the progress made by nations in addressing climate change. The report, which represents the first comprehensive assessment of nearly 200...more
9/27/2023
/ Carbon Emissions ,
Clean Energy ,
Climate Action Plan ,
Climate Change ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Fossil Fuel ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Infrastructure ,
Paris Agreement ,
Supply Chain ,
United Nations
In late July 2023, House Republicans on the Financial Services Committee introduced four bills targeting various business and market activities that implicate environmental, social, and governance issues. In a statement...more
9/7/2023
/ Climate Action Plan ,
Climate Change ,
Corporate Governance ,
Corporate Social Responsibility ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Popular ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Proxy Voting ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Shareholder Proposals
Environmental law NGO ClientEarth has written to the Global Public Policy Committee (GPPC), which brings together representatives of the six large international accounting organizations, to request greater transparency and...more
On July 5, the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) released a statement on the Net-Zero Insurance Alliance’s (NZIA) progress towards net-zero targets. The NZIA is convened by the UN Principles for Sustainable Insurance (PSI) and...more
In June 2023, Climate Action 100+, a climate-focused investor initiative, launched the second phase of its benchmarking program to help investors assess and engage with public companies on climate-related issues. Phase 2...more
In a report published in June 2023, the Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment (CCSI) claims that many financial institutions’ climate strategies are not currently aligned with global climate goals under the Paris...more
In April 2023, as part of ongoing efforts to enhance transparency, Morningstar Sustainalytics launched a ratings system designed to provide investors with an assessment of a company’s current net-zero alignment. The company’s...more
On May 15, 2023, twenty-three Republican state attorneys general (AGs) sent a letter to members of the Net-Zero Insurance Alliance (NZIA) expressing “serious concerns” about whether the NZIA’s requirements comply with federal...more
On May 12, 2023, the UK High Court dismissed a lawsuit filed by ClientEarth against Shell’s Board of Directors, finding that ClientEarth failed to establish a prima facie case against the Board for its management of climate...more
On April 19, 2023, CDP launched a request for 7,000 companies to disclose on the production and use of the most environmentally problematic plastics, i.e., plastic polymers, durable plastics, and plastic packaging, through...more
On March 30, 2023, 21 Republican Attorneys General (AGs) wrote a letter addressed to over 50 U.S. asset managers citing “concerns about the ongoing agreements between asset managers to use Americans’ savings to push political...more
5/9/2023
/ Anti-Competitive ,
Antitrust Provisions ,
Asset Management ,
Climate Action Plan ,
Climate Change ,
Competition ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Greenwashing ,
Investment Funds ,
Investment Opportunities ,
Net Zero ,
Popular ,
State Attorneys General
The Institutional Investors Group on Climate Change (IIGCC), a European membership body for investor collaboration on climate change, announced the launch of its Net Zero Engagement Initiative (NZEI). A primary goal of the...more
5/5/2023
/ Capital Investments ,
Climate Action Plan ,
Climate Change ,
Corporate Governance ,
Corporate Social Responsibility ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Investment ,
Investment Portfolios ,
Net Zero ,
Paris Agreement ,
Popular
Several members of the New York congressional delegation have written a letter urging Governor Kathy Hochul to amend her fiscal year 2024 budget to incorporate certain elements of the New York Build Public Renewables Act...more
5/1/2023
/ Climate Action Plan ,
Climate Change ,
Federal Funding ,
Green Energy ,
Green Infrastructure ,
Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) ,
Infrastructure ,
New York ,
Renewable Energy ,
State Budgets ,
Tax Incentives
On March 20, 2023, the White House Council of Economic Advisers released the Economic Report of the President (“Report”). Chapter 9 of the Report, entitled “Opportunities for Better Managing Weather Risk in the Changing...more
The Royal Bank of Canada announced that this year it will begin incorporating ESG considerations into incentive compensation plans for the bank’s CEO and other top executives. In particular, the bank plans to take ESG...more
Last month, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) announced that, after conducting a “preliminary review” of ESG benchmarks, “the overall quality of ESG-related disclosures made by benchmark administrators was poor” and...more
According to a new survey, most large companies are preparing to comply with the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) proposed climate disclosure rule even though it is not final, but many business leaders are concerned...more
4/7/2023
/ Climate Action Plan ,
Climate Change ,
Corporate Governance ,
Corporate Social Responsibility ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
Registration Statement ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Regulation