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
A recent study by Bain & Company and sustainability ratings provider EcoVadis “examined how various aspects of sustainability and ESG activities—things like setting ESG targets, tracking results, embedding sustainability into...more
In April 2023, Goldman Sachs Asset Management (GSAM) published its 12th annual insurance survey, which not surprisingly includes findings that the industry continues to be focused on the potential impact of climate change....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
A recent academic study covering the period 2010-2021 has found that many companies in the S&P500 currently are providing disclosure on ESG issues, and in the absence of mandated disclosure rules, do so on a voluntary basis....more
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
More than 1,400 individual investors have signed a letter asserting that a large U.S.-based asset manager is violating its fiduciary duty to mitigate climate-related investment risks....more
On March 7, 2023, the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (“OSFI”), the Canadian government agency responsible for supervising federally-regulated financial institutions (“FRFI”) and insurance companies,...more
3/31/2023
/ Banks ,
Climate Action Plan ,
Climate Change ,
Corporate Social Responsibility ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Financial Services Industry ,
FRFI ,
New Guidance ,
OSFI ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD)
According to a recent report published by global non-profit environmental disclosure platform CDP, approximately 41% of responding companies are reporting on one or more categories of supply chain emissions, even though such...more
The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) launched a consultation paper (Consultation Paper) last month seeking public comment on three topics: (1) ESG disclosure; (2) ESG ratings; and (3) ESG investing by mutual...more
3/24/2023
/ Comment Period ,
Consultation Papers ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
India ,
Investment ,
Investment Management ,
Mutual Funds ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Securities Regulation
On March 16, 2023 the Republican governors of 19 states announced an alliance led by Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, to “push back against President Biden’s environmental, social, corporate governance (ESG) agenda that is...more
3/22/2023
/ Asset Management ,
Benefit Plan Sponsors ,
Biden Administration ,
Climate Change ,
Corporate Social Responsibility ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Investment ,
Popular ,
Regulatory Agenda
On February 23, 2023, the Green Technical Advisory Group (“GTAG”), an independent advisor to the UK government, published a paper entitled “Promoting the International Interoperability of a UK Green Taxonomy.” In the paper,...more
The Net-Zero Banking Alliance (“NZBA”), the UN-led coalition of global banks “committed to aligning their lending investment portfolios with net-zero emissions by 2050,” is facing backlash from certain sustainability-focused...more
3/16/2023
/ Banks ,
Climate Action Plan ,
Climate Change ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Greenwashing ,
Investment Portfolios ,
Lending ,
Net Zero ,
Sustainability ,
United Nations
Over the last three years, PwC and the Leadership Institute at the London Business School have studied the prevalence and efficacy of linking executive pay to ESG-related goals or targets. Their first two reports—Paying well...more
On February 23, three climate advocacy groups—Friends of the Earth France, Notre Affaire à Tous and Oxfam France—filed a lawsuit alleging that a global financial institution violated Article L. 225-102-4.-I of the French...more
On February 14, 2023, Georgeson LLC, the shareholder proxy solicitation firm, published an analysis of investor voting decisions in 2022 on certain types of shareholder proposals. In preparing its report, it looked at public...more
Following strong demand from investors for a timeline, the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) has confirmed that draft IFRS S1 (General Requirements for Disclosure of Sustainability-Related Financial...more
In its annual letter to company board chairs, Aviva Chief Executive Mark Versey set out stewardship priorities for the coming year. The global asset manager, which has £232 billion ($279 billion) under management, states that...more