Recently, the Canadian Competition Bureau published updated guidelines concerning its approach to environmental claims following last year's amendments to Canadian law that specifically targeted greenwashing. These...more
6/18/2025
/ Advertising ,
Canada ,
Competition ,
Consumer Protection Laws ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Environmental Claims ,
False Advertising ,
Greenwashing ,
Misleading Statements ,
New Regulations ,
Regulatory Requirements
Recently, Fitch Ratings issued a discussion paper that outlined a “contemplated framework for the analysis of physical climate risk for [Structured Finance] and [Covered Bonds] for the potential negative implications of...more
6/11/2025
/ Bonds ,
Climate Change ,
Credit Ratings ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Insurance Industry ,
Mortgages ,
Popular ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Risk Assessment ,
Risk Management
In the first Trump Administration, the Securities and Exchange Commission promulgated certain rules that had the effect of erecting barriers to activist investors seeking to have shareholder proposals--often involving topics...more
Recently, the Canadian Securities Administrators (the umbrella organization of Canada's provincial securities regulators) announced that it would pause the development of certain sustainability reporting initiatives,...more
Last week, a long-running lawsuit brought against a major German energy company by a Peruvian farmer for alleged damages stemming from climate change was dismissed by an appellate court in Germany. The court's reasoning...more
On May 22, 2025, the New York Court of Appeals--the highest court in New York State--unanimously upheld New York City's Local Law 97 against a challenge brought by certain property owners. This law--Local Law 97--is “aimed...more
It has been reported that the Federal Reserve has disbanded certain internal groups that were intended to develop “institutional capacity and knowledge” with respect to climate risk. Specifically, among the groups that have...more
On May 29, 2025, the California Air Resources Board delivered a presentation that provided additional details concerning the soon-to-be implemented mandatory climate disclosures. Perhaps most significantly, the California...more
The SEC’s mandatory climate disclosure rule remains stayed pending the outcome of the current litigation in the Eighth Circuit. Recently, however, Republican SEC Commissioner Mark Uyeda suggested that the Trump administration...more
3 Under the Biden Administration, the Department of Labor ("DOL") had issued a rule that permitted ESG factors to be considered when making investments on behalf of 401(k) plans. (This rule had replaced an earlier one from...more
6/2/2025
/ 401k ,
Biden Administration ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Federal Labor Laws ,
Popular ,
Regulatory Agencies ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Retirement Plan ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Trump Administration
Last week, the Trump Administration's FTC and DOJ (Antitrust Division) filed a statement of interest in support of a lawsuit filed last November by eleven Republican state attorneys-general against three major asset managers...more
Earlier this year, each of the major US banks announced their withdrawal from the Net Zero Banking Alliance. This move, which was likely undertaken in response to the policy priorities of the Trump Administration, was...more
A local state court in Pennsylvania recently dismissed an array of climate tort claims brought against major fossil fuel companies by a local government--in this case, Bucks County. Among the three dozen or so climate tort...more
SEC Commissioner Uyeda, one of the Republican appointees to the Securities & Exchange Commission, recently stated (in remarks at the 2025 “SEC Speaks” Conference) that the SEC should not rescind the climate disclosure rule...more
On May 12, 2025, in a 5-2 decision, the Colorado Supreme Court held that the tort claims brought by local governments in Colorado against major fossil fuel companies concerning damages stemming from climate change could...more
Federal Regulation On April 8, 2025, President Trump issued an executive order that sought to target actions undertaken by individual US states to combat climate change, for the stated purpose of ensuring “American energy...more
Recently, both the State of Hawaii and the State of Michigan had announced that they would be pursuing litigation against fossil fuel companies concerning alleged damages stemming from the companies' contribution to climate...more
5/5/2025
/ Climate Change ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Energy Policy ,
Energy Sector ,
Environmental Litigation ,
Executive Orders ,
Fossil Fuel ,
Litigation Strategies ,
Motion to Dismiss ,
Preemption ,
State and Local Government ,
Trump Administration
On April 24, 2025, the Eighth Circuit ordered that the litigation over the validity of the SEC's climate disclosure rule be “held in abeyance.” This order was in response to a submission by a coalition of blue states that...more
Earlier this month, President Trump issued an executive order that sought to target actions undertaken by individual U.S. states to combat climate change, for the stated purpose of ensuring “American energy dominance.”...more
On March 27, 2025, as expected, the SEC under the Trump administration abandoned the climate disclosure rule promulgated by the Biden administration, specifically stating in a court filing that it would no longer defend the...more
As expected, the SEC under the Trump Administration has abandoned the climate disclosure rule promulgated by the Biden Administration. Specifically, as stated in a court filing today, “the Commission has determined that it...more
3/28/2025
/ Appeals ,
Biden Administration ,
Climate Change ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Final Rules ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Trump Administration
The Trump administration’s SEC has begun the process of undoing the mandatory climate disclosure rule promulgated by the SEC under the Biden administration. Specifically, the SEC has now asked the Eighth Circuit — where the...more
On February 18, 2025, Judge Bloom (S.D. Fla.) dismissed a lawsuit against Lululemon, the athleisure company, that centered upon allegations of greenwashing. Specifically, the plaintiffs here had contended “that Lululemon...more
2/25/2025
/ Class Action ,
Consumer Protection Laws ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Environmental Litigation ,
Federal Rules of Civil Procedure ,
Greenwashing ,
Litigation Strategies ,
Motion to Dismiss ,
Standing ,
Sustainability ,
Unfair or Deceptive Trade Practices
In December 2024, the State of New York enacted the “Climate Change Superfund Act,” which would impose retroactive fines on fossil fuel producers for greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to climate change. (New York was...more
4 Last week, a federal district judge in the Northern District of Texas upheld a rule promulgated by the Biden Administration's Department of Labor enabling ESG-focused investing. Specifically, the court determined that the...more