ESG, Cyber Risk and Compliance
Ongoing wars abroad, political division and election year uncertainty in the United States, along with continuing state, federal, and global regulatory discord on sustainability and artificial intelligence, among other...more
Regulators across the globe continue to focus on disclosures and marketing relating to environmental, social, and governance (ESG) issues. Consistent with this trend, on September 20, 2023, the U.S. Securities and Exchange...more
The International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB), established by the IFRS Foundation (IFRS), issued a comprehensive global baseline of disclosure standards to facilitate consistent and comparable disclosures on risks...more
2023 MID-YEAR REVIEW - In the first half of 2023, several rule changes have been proposed by the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board (MSRB) and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), including changes to...more
From Amazon to Walmart, companies across the globe are striving to implement ESG initiatives that can stand up to increased scrutiny. The energy industry, like all industries, is facing the possibility of new standards...more
The standards are part of a global initiative to consolidate sustainability disclosures to help investors assess the value of companies. On 31 March 2022, the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) released...more
On March 21, 2022, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) released a comprehensive set of proposed rules mandating climate-related risk disclosures for public companies (Proposed Rule). For some the release marks...more
The genesis of the term ESG, which combines environmental, social, and governance metrics into a popular acronym, is frequently linked to a report published in 2004 titled “Who Cares Wins." The report, endorsed by a group of...more
Discover how to set and accomplish your ESG goals - Environment, Social, and Governance (ESG) is no longer an isolated function within a company, nor is it an issue only for publicly traded companies. It’s front and...more
On October 20th, SEC Commissioner Lee delivered a speech focused on the regulations concerning climate disclosures that the SEC is expected to issue soon. (Indeed, Commissioner Lee emphasized that these regulations are...more
The number of frameworks and standards in the environmental, social and governance (ESG) space can be overwhelming. While various organizations have set up different standards and frameworks, last year five of them — the...more
The past several years has seen growing attention on climate change disclosures and other environmental, social, and governance (“ESG”) issues. In 2016, a variety of universities faced pressure as student bodies demanded...more
Institutional investors and other stakeholders are seeking better information from public companies on workforce diversity. Company executives and boards are discussing how and what to disclose, and many observers believe the...more
The SEC recently issued a public statement asking investors, companies and other market participants to share their views on climate change disclosure. Comments are due by June 13, 2021 and can be submitted via the SEC...more
As society reckons with the enormous danger of climate change, there is no question that corporations must take responsibility for their contributions to rampant global warming, while working to reduce their emissions. For...more
Public companies will be required to disclose climate risks and greenhouse gas emissions under President-elect Biden’s administration. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) will institute rulemaking and guidance on the...more
This paper attempts to provide a definition and context for the term, Environmental, Social and Governance (“ESG”), explain how and why it is used, demonstrate how investors are driving the proliferation of ESG reporting,...more
In August, the SEC amended the Reg S-K disclosure requirements related to the descriptions of business, legal proceedings and risk factors. Probably the most significant change was the enhancement of the disclosure...more
This blog doesn’t typically write about the goings-on at the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, but here’s an exception—especially given that its recommendations encompass the SEC. In July, the CFTC voted to establish a...more
On August 26, 2020, the Securities and Exchange Commission adopted amendments to Regulation S-K that simplify and modernize the disclosure requirements relating to description of business, legal proceedings, and risk factors,...more
Companies across industries—from retail to high tech to financial services—are touting their sustainability initiatives to attract and retain customers and employees. But investors are similarly clamoring for regular...more
The year 2020 was already predicted to be a year of heightened focus on environmental, social, and governance (ESG) topics for public companies—and that was before the COVID-19 pandemic and widespread protests galvanized by...more
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s Investor Advisory Committee’s Investor-as-Owner Subcommittee recently voted 14-4 to approve a recommendation that urges the Commission (SEC) to begin an effort to update the...more
The SEC proposed updates to Regulation S-K to modernize, simplify and enhance financial disclosures, here. The SEC’s press release, here, summarizes the changes as well as any law firm memo (but see here and here if you don’t...more
SEC Adopts Final Rules for Disclosure of Hedging Policies. On December 18, 2018, the SEC approved final rules regarding the disclosure of a company’s hedging practices or policies, as mandated by the Dodd-Frank Act. This...more