On 23 January the Court of Appeal unanimously overturned the High Court’s decision to sanction Adler’s restructuring plan, following a successful challenge from an ad hoc committee of noteholders (the AHG). The judgment is...more
As 2024 gets underway, 2023 will be remembered as the year that King Charles III’s coronation captured our attention with its many (and occasionally bizarre) storied traditions and customs and, of course, for the passing of...more
Overview -
The Court of Appeal has overturned the decision of the High Court in Carton-Kelly v Darty Holdings SAS, providing welcome clarity for directors of distressed companies when considering whether to make payments...more
On September 5, 2023, the Corporate Leaders Group Europe (CLG Europe) published a position paper urging the European Union to cut its greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by at least 90% by 2040, and asked EU member states to...more
10/31/2023
/ Carbon Emissions ,
Climate Action Plan ,
Climate Change ,
Energy Policy ,
Energy Reform ,
Environmental Policies ,
EU ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Infrastructure ,
Paris Agreement ,
Pollution Control ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Renewable Energy
The Transition Pathway Initiative (TPI), in partnership with the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment, conducted a study “[t]racking progress with the TPI Net Zero Banking Assessment Framework.”...more
The European Financial Reporting Advisory Group (EFRAG) and the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) released a joint statement announcing the interoperability of their respective reporting standards, enabling companies subject...more
In August 2023, the UK government announced that it would publish guidance on emissions monitoring and reporting for public sector organizations in order to help achieve its aim to reduce direct greenhouse gas emissions from...more
In August 2023, S&P Global announced that it would be changing its approach to its ESG Scores on corporate sustainability performance, citing inconsistent company disclosures. The “S&P Global ESG Scores Methodology” is an...more
In August 2023, the UK Parliament’s Environmental Audit Committee launched an inquiry into the current and future role of private finance in nature recovery, in order to meet its goal of reaching Net Zero by 2050 while...more
On July 31, 2023, the European Commission adopted the long-anticipated European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS) for use by all companies subject to the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD). The...more
9/20/2023
/ Climate Change ,
Corporate Governance ,
Corporate Social Responsibility ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
EU ,
EU Directive ,
European Commission ,
Investment ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Sustainability ,
Sustainable Business Practices
Amid ongoing scrutiny over proxy voting (particularly in relation to ESG-related resolutions), the UK’s financial regulator, the Financial Conduct Authority, has launched a consultation aimed at developing a vote-reporting...more
The UK Climate Change Committee (CCC) recently released its 2023 statutory report, evaluating the UK’s progress towards reducing greenhouse gas emissions and meeting carbon reduction targets. This report, mandated by the...more
9/7/2023
/ Carbon Emissions ,
Climate Action Plan ,
Climate Change ,
Energy Policy ,
Environmental Policies ,
Fossil Fuel ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Hydrogen Power ,
Infrastructure ,
Net Zero ,
Pollution Control ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Reform ,
UK
The United States and the United Kingdom announced a partnership to address a range of global challenges, including the transition to clean energy. As part of the partnership, announced on June 9, 2023, the two countries...more
8/15/2023
/ Clean Energy ,
Climate Change ,
Electric Vehicles ,
Emerging Technology Companies ,
Energy Policy ,
Environmental Policies ,
Infrastructure ,
Minerals ,
Nuclear Power ,
Paris Agreement ,
Taxonomy ,
UK
On June 29, 2023, the Financial Conduct Authority, the UK’s financial markets regulator, released a summary of its concerns over the market for sustainability-linked loans (SLLs). Responding to concerns that banks overstate...more
On June 21, 2023, the General Court of the European Union rejected an action brought by a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) seeking to annul European Commission legislation that identified certain activities related to...more
8/2/2023
/ Climate Action Plan ,
Climate Change ,
Corporate Governance ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
European Parliament ,
Natural Gas ,
Nuclear Power ,
Sustainable Business Practices ,
Taxonomy
In June 2023, the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) published a draft of its Financial Institutions Net Zero (FINZ) Standard to enable financial institutions to establish targets consistent with achieving net-zero...more
7/26/2023
/ Carbon Emissions ,
Climate Action Plan ,
Climate Change ,
Consultation Papers ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Financing ,
Net Zero ,
Paris Agreement ,
Renewable Energy
On June 2, 2023, the European Financial Reporting Advisory Group (EFRAG) issued a draft letter requesting comments on the International Sustainability Standards Board’s (ISSB) proposal to improve the international...more
The UK’s advertising watchdog, the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA), has banned recent advertisements by three oil and gas majors. The advertisements, by Shell, Repsol and Petronas were banned on the basis of...more
On May 9, 2023, Greenpeace, fellow climate change activist group ReCommon and 12 Italian citizens from regions affected by impacts of climate change announced their intention to file a first-of-its-kind lawsuit in Italy...more
6/13/2023
/ Climate Change ,
Energy & Climate Debates ,
Environmental Claims ,
Environmental Justice ,
Environmental Policies ,
Fossil Fuel ,
Greenpeace ,
Greenwashing ,
Infrastructure ,
Italy ,
Oil & Gas
In April, the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB) announced that the public consultation period for its proposed new sustainability assurance standard will begin in late July or early August 2023...more
On April 28, 2023, the European Commission and the European Investment Bank (EIB) announced their intention to jointly provide €18 billion in funding to finance projects covering climate action, clean energy and connectivity...more
On April 18, 2023, eight Greenpeace organizations (the organizations) filed a lawsuit against the European Commission at the European Court of Justice following the Commission’s inclusion of natural gas and nuclear energy in...more
5/24/2023
/ Climate Action Plan ,
Climate Change ,
Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) ,
Environmental Justice ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
European Commission ,
Greenpeace ,
Infrastructure ,
Natural Gas ,
Nuclear Power ,
Oil & Gas ,
Taxonomy
As part of the European Central Bank’s (ECB) 2021 action plan to incorporate climate change considerations into its monetary policy, the ECB conducted a climate risk stress test of the Eurosystem balance sheet in 2022. Those...more
On April 25, the UK All-Party Parliamentary Group on ESG (APPG) published a report on environmental, social and governance issues. All-Party Parliamentary Groups are informal groups of Members of the House of Commons and...more
5/10/2023
/ Climate Change ,
Corporate Governance ,
Corporate Social Responsibility ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Net Zero ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (SMEs) ,
Sustainability ,
UK
The European Central Bank (ECB) has published its first climate-related financial disclosures. The disclosures provide information on ECB portfolios, including detailing their carbon footprints and exposure to climate risks,...more