The Guidance would increase expectations for regulated financial institutions to identify, measure, monitor, and control climate-related financial risks. By Betty M. Huber, Arthur S. Long, Pia Naib, Austin J. Pierce, and Deric Behar For the past few years, the New York State Department of Financial Services (DFS) Superintendent has prioritized setting the pace in climate … Continue Reading
By Paul Davies, Sarah Fortt, Betty M. Huber, Karmpreet Grewal, and Austin Pierce On January 4, 2023, the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs released the Fall 2022 Regulatory Flexibility Agenda. The agenda includes several updates to the Securities and Exchange Commission’s plans for various ESG-related actions. A summary of primary ESG-related actions is provided below, … Continue Reading
Navigating a global patchwork of ESG regulation and enforcement while preparing for greenwashing claims and other ESG litigation will likely be among the main concerns for companies in 2023. By Paul Davies, Sarah Fortt, and Betty M. Huber Both anticipated and less expected changes occurred across the ESG landscape in 2022. Anticipated changes included regulatory … Continue Reading
The updated Green Guides will likely impact legal liability for environmental marketing claims in the years to come. By Jean-Philippe Brisson, Paul A. Davies, Sarah E. Fortt, Julia A. Hatcher, Betty M. Huber, Robin M. Hulshizer, Michael Dreibelbis, Michael D. Green, Danny Dvorak, Brett Frazer, Austin J. Pierce, Angela Walker, and Jacqueline Y. Zhang On … Continue Reading
The guiding principles are similar to related proposals from other banking regulators, but will require further clarification through the comment process. By Nicola Higgs, Betty M. Huber, Arthur S. Long, Pia Naib, Anne Mainwaring, and Deric Behar On December 2, 2022, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (Federal Reserve) published proposed Principles … Continue Reading
The Council’s position includes a number of differences from the European Commission’s original proposal, including in relation to the requirement to diligence the broader value chain. By Paul A. Davies, Michael D. Green, and James Bee On 30 November 2022, the European Council (the Council) — which comprises the views of the EU Member State governments … Continue Reading
The third version introduces several new disclosure recommendations ahead of what is supposed to be a “Paris moment” for biodiversity in Montreal. By Paul A. Davies, Michael D. Green, James Bee, and Austin Pierce As environmental ambitions continue to grow, much attention has focused on climate. A key focal lens for that has been the … Continue Reading
From 2024 at the earliest, more European and global companies will need to disclose their ESG activities in greater detail. By Paul A. Davies, Michael D. Green, and James Bee On 10 November 2022, the European Parliament adopted a final version of the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD). The CSRD will require large EU companies … Continue Reading
Extensive negotiations focused on finalizing the details of a “rulebook” for an international carbon market under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement. By Jean-Philippe Brisson, Paul A. Davies, Sarah Fortt, Betty M. Huber, Michael Dreibelbis, and Qingyi Pan The 27th annual Conference of Parties (COP27) of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) … Continue Reading
TPT’s proposed best practice includes four elements for effective disclosure of transition plans, aligned with GFANZ’s and the ISSB’s disclosure recommendations. By Paul A. Davies, Michael D. Green, and James Bee On 8 November 2022, the UK’s Transition Plan Taskforce (TPT) launched a draft of its proposed Transition Plan Disclosure Framework (the TPT Framework), alongside … Continue Reading
Hong Kong’s Core Climate aims to facilitate trading of carbon credits, while the Hub plans to expedite Singapore’s ESG ecosystem growth. By Farhana Sharmeen, Paul A. Davies, and James Bee On 28 October 2022, the Hong Kong Exchange and Clearing Limited (HKEX) launched Core Climate, Hong Kong’s International Carbon Marketplace. The birth of Core Climate … Continue Reading
The FCA hopes the proposals will protect consumer trust in ESG-related financial products and help consumers navigate the increasingly complex ESG-related financial market. By Paul A. Davies, Nicola Higgs, Michael D. Green, James Bee, and Anne Mainwaring On 25 October 2022, the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) issued a consultation paper (the Consultation Paper) on Sustainability Disclosure Requirements (SDR) … Continue Reading
The adopted position would mean that financial institutions fall under the remit of the regulation, requiring them to conduct additional due diligence on both established and new customers. By JP Sweny, Michael Green, James Bee, and Vanessa McLellan On 13 September 2022, the European Parliament voted to adopt its position in relation to the European … Continue Reading
The proposal highlights the growing global focus on companies’ human rights obligations not just towards employees but also towards workers in their supply chains. By Paul A. Davies, Michael D. Green, and James Bee On 14 September 2022, the European Commission (the Commission) introduced a proposed Regulation (the Proposal) which seeks to ban products made using forced labour from … Continue Reading
The Guidance Note aims to support Equator Principles Financial Institutions navigating the environmental and social due diligence process. By James R. Barrett, Joshua W. Marnitz, and Malorie R. Medellin In July 2022, the Equator Principles Association published a Guidance Note on how to apply the latest iteration of the Equator Principles (EP), EP4, during the … Continue Reading
The call highlights the challenges in developing alignment between global ESG reporting standards. By Paul A. Davies, Sarah Fortt, Betty M. Huber, Michael D. Green, and James Bee The European Central Bank (ECB) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF), two of the world’s leading public financial institutions have stressed the importance of consistency in global ESG-disclosure standards in a … Continue Reading
A major voluntary carbon standard invites comments on linking carbon credits with crypto instruments and tokens, highlighting emerging questions around blockchain transactions in voluntary carbon markets. By JP Brisson, Michael Dreibelbis, Brett Frazer, and Nick Eberhart On August 3, 2022, Verra, a voluntary carbon standard, announced it was opening a public consultation process on its … Continue Reading
The FCA emphasised the increasing prevalence of providers and the potential harm from lack of regulation in this area. By Paul A. Davies, Nicola Higgs, Michael D. Green, and James Bee, and Anne Mainwaring In June 2022, the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) issued a Feedback Statement in response to a consultation paper on ESG integration in capital … Continue Reading
The Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive expands the existing sustainability reporting requirements and brings more companies under its scope. By Paul A. Davies, Michael D. Green, and James Bee On 21 June 2022, the European Parliament and European Council reached a provisional political agreement on the terms of the EU’s proposed Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD). The CSRD … Continue Reading
Forced Labor Enforcement Task Force issues required enforcement strategy, including guidance to importers. By Erin Brown Jones, Paul A. Davies, Sarah E. Fortt, Betty M. Huber, Nathan H. Seltzer, Michael D. Green, James Bee, and Angela Walker On June 21, 2022, the key operative provision of the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA) entered into … Continue Reading
The move follows a number of similar standards that regulators and governments across the globe have proposed. By Paul A. Davies, Michael D. Green, and James Bee With effect from 1 June 2022, the Guidance for Enterprise ESG Disclosure (the Guidance), published by Beijing-based think tank China Enterprise Reform and Development Society (CERDS), is seeking to become the … Continue Reading
The consultations invite stakeholders’ views on the Environmental Liability Directive and the Waste Framework Directive. By Paul A. Davies, Michael D. Green, and James Bee In May 2022, the European Commission (Commission) issued public consultations in relation to the proposed revision of two of the EU’s key environmental frameworks. The consultations on the Environmental Liability Directive (ELD) … Continue Reading
The two new bodies are expected to help harmonise standards in different jurisdictions to meet investor demand for comparable ESG information. By Paul A. Davies, Sarah Fortt, Nicola Higgs, Betty M. Huber, Michael D. Green, and James Bee On 27 April 2022, the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) announced the formation of two bodies that it hopes will assist in providing … Continue Reading
HM Treasury’s Transition Plan Taskforce aims to influence international standard setting and make the UK the world’s first net zero-aligned financial centre. By Paul A. Davies, Michael D. Green, Nicola Higgs, Anne Mainwaring, James Bee, and Dianne Bell On 25 April 2022, HM Treasury (HMT) announced the launch of the UK Transition Plan Taskforce (TPT) … Continue Reading
