Sustainability & Responsible Business

Businesses are increasingly embracing responsible commercial practices—across environmental, social and governance (ESG) dimensions—in pursuit of a sustainable future.  As market expectations intensify, our clients face a rapidly evolving and fragmented reporting and regulatory landscape. Due diligence obligations require greater scrutiny and transparency of supply chains, and corporate strategy needs to consider legal accountability and stakeholder engagement.

Our Sustainability and Responsible Business Practice draws on the experience of lawyers across the Firm in practices that include Environment & Climate Change, Business & Human Rights, Public Company Advisory, Litigation, Antitrust/Competition, International Trade, Energy Transition, Debt Finance, Regulatory & Compliance, Economic Sanctions & Export Controls and White Collar/Investigations. Together, we help companies, financial institutions, sovereigns, investors and other stakeholders address these challenges in support of their long-term stability and growth objectives.

Climate

Climate change presents a variety of risks—including physical, transition and legal—that can significantly impact a company’s operations and financial performance. Shareholders and other stakeholders are increasingly interested in understanding company approaches to managing climate risks and opportunities, including around compliance with climate disclosure regulations, emissions-related obligations and targets, and climate governance strategy. Our climate change practice draws from experience that includes advising sovereigns on global climate change treaty negotiations and businesses on climate risk assessment in transactions, class actions, climate change litigation and carbon offset transactions.

Environmental

A growing number of transactions and disputes involve complex environmental issues and compliance requirements. Our environmental team guides clients in navigating global, national and local environmental regulations relevant to their operations. On complex business transactions, including M&A, divestitures, project financings and securities offerings, our transactional practice drafts and negotiates environmental terms and indemnity provisions. 

We routinely counsel clients on environmental permitting, enforcement defense matters, environmental litigation, internal investigations, and a range of environmental and regulatory matters affecting their operations. Our litigators also represent clients facing environmental tort claims before courts and tribunals globally.  We have handled mass tort and multidistrict proceedings as well as enforcement and cost-recovery actions brought by regulators and public entities across a wide range of jurisdictions, including in the United States, Europe, the UK and Australia.

Energy transition

Clients face increasing demands to clarify the implications of energy transition for their operations and business models. Our knowledge of energy assets, regulations and local markets means we can advise on investing in both traditional core and renewable assets, as well as newer technologies such as carbon capture, battery storage and hydrogen. Our lawyers have significant experience in monetization projects, corporate venturing and investments into energy transition assets, renewable energy project development, new technologies, SDG-linked securitizations, green bonds and other financings with ESG and “just transition” requirements.

Sustainable finance

Sustainability plays an important role in global financial markets. Issuers, arrangers, sovereigns and investors are raising capital and making investments through sustainable finance arrangements, including green bonds, while industry bodies publish guidance for structuring these transactions so that they meet the recognized standards and attract the scale of investment required. Our Capital Markets and Debt Finance teams devise innovative structures that finance capital sustainably and conform to developing best practice standards. They draw on experience that includes advising on compliance with the environmental and social standards of multilateral development banks, such as the World Bank and International Finance Corporation, as well as evolving international standards, including the Equator Principles.

Business and human rights

There has been a dramatic transformation of the legal and reputational risks associated with business impacts on human rights. With respect to specific legislation and international guidance—such as the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises on Responsible Business Conduct and the UN Guiding Principles on Business & Human Rights—we advise on the full life cycle of preparing and responding to these changes. This includes risk management, due diligence, policies and procedures, investment structures, social assessments, reporting, and grievance and remediation mechanisms. With the proliferation of complex proxy resolutions and litigation alleging claims related to supply chains, human rights, workforce and human capital issues—as well as evolving and increasingly sensitive disclosure requirements—we help clients manage the mounting pressure for transparency and responsibility in their global operations. 

Governance

Companies, boards and investors need to implement strategically aligned sustainability reporting and governance disclosures. Our support allows public company boards to meet ESG oversight expectations and requirements of regulators, institutional investors and markets. We take a market-specific approach to implementing international and sector-specific standards, frameworks and initiatives, such as the UN Guiding Principles, OECD Guidelines, Sustainable Development Goals, CDP (Carbon Disclosure Project), GRI (Global Reporting Initiative) and the IFRS Sustainability Disclosure Standards.