This week, the SEC's Acting Chief Accountant, Paul Munter, issued a statement concerning "High Quality Financial Reporting in a Complex Environment." This statement touched on a number of matters, including the...more
In a recent speech, SEC Commissioner Crenshaw, one of the Democratic appointees to the Commission, focused on the role internal controls play in assessing and monitoring ESG risks. Specifically, after noting that the SEC...more
SEC Chairman Gensler, in a set of prepared remarks before the Investor Advisory Committee that focused on cryptocurrency, nonetheless availed himself of the opportunity to once again emphasize that "investors . . . are...more
The New York State Department of Financial Services ("DFS")--one of the primary state regulatory authorities in New York--has now issued guidance to insurers concerning managing the risks associated with climate change. This...more
The International Financial Reporting Standards Foundation, the non-profit foundation that oversees the International Accounting Standards Board, has announced the creation of the "International Sustainability Standards...more
This week, the SEC issued a new staff legal bulletin concerning shareholder proposals, which stated, as a matter of SEC policy, that proposals "request[ing] companies adopt timeframes or targets to address climate change" are...more
The Supreme Court recently agreed to hear an appeal of the D.C. Circuit's decision to strike down Trump-era restrictions--which were quite weak--on coal-burning power plants. The Court's ruling here may limit the ability of...more
The United Kingdom recently published "Greening Finance: A Roadmap to Sustainable Investing." This document reflects and incorporates a number of environmental initiatives, including the principle that "[t]he financial...more
Climate change poses many risks. For companies, besides the physical impact of climate change itself, this risk is often embodied by regulatory pressure imposed by government agencies or other entities exercising oversight...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
Last week, during a program on "Building the Financial System of the 21st Century," in the course of a speech principally focused on various market risks, SEC Commissioner Crenshaw nonetheless availed herself of the...more
Yesterday, the SEC released a sample letter to companies concerning climate change disclosures. Relying upon the guidance the SEC issued over ten years ago--the 2010 Climate Change Guidance--the SEC noted that certain...more
Earlier this week, Vermont became the latest state to file a lawsuit against the major oil companies featuring allegations focusing on climate change. This is simply the most recent of more than two dozen lawsuits that have...more
In yet another front of the multifaceted government campaign against climate change, the House Oversight Committee is now investigating the major oil companies and the principal fossil fuel industry lobbying groups for...more
Yesterday, SEC Chairman Gensler testified before the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs. His remarks were wide-ranging, and touched on a number of different subjects, but importantly he re-affirmed the...more
There are many aspects to the changing regulatory landscape as the U.S. government (and other authorities) increase their focus on climate change and adopt policies and regulations designed to presumably steer the private...more
On August 9, 2021, the IPCC released its Sixth Assessment Report (https://www.ipcc.ch/report/ar6/wg1/#SPM), which emphasized the dangers of climate change, and that many of the risks associated with climate change are now...more
Over the past several years, a number of municipalities and other public sector actors have launched a series of lawsuits against the fossil fuel industry, seeking to hold individual companies liable for damages (or expected...more
In a speech yesterday in a webinar hosted by the Principles for Responsible Investment, SEC Chairman Gensler offered additional clarity on his thoughts concerning mandatory disclosures about climate risk.
First,...more
On Friday, SEC Chairman Gensler announced the appointment of five lawyers to his policy staff. Among them is one individual--Mika Morse, who previously worked for Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii)--with the title of "climate...more
Last week, one of the primary topics at the July 7th meeting of the SEC's Asset Management Advisory Committee was ESG disclosures. Indeed, according to the discussion draft of the relevant subcommittee, certain specific...more
Today, the EU released a plan to combat climate change through reducing emissions. Significantly, key elements of this plan include increasing the costs on businesses whose activities contribute to climate change, even when...more
In recent remarks delivered by Commissioner Lee at the Society for Corporate Governance, she took the opportunity to again focus on the risks posed by ESG issues, particularly climate change, and how these particular matters...more
SEC Commissioner Roisman, one of the two Republicans currently serving as SEC commissioners, has questioned over the past few months the SEC's new focus on mandatory ESG disclosures, particularly those focused on climate...more
During his remarks at London City Week, SEC Chairman Gensler again highlighted the SEC's new focus on climate change disclosures. Specifically, Chairman Gensler identified climate change disclosures as his top priority, and...more