The European Union’s Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), which entered into force in January 2023, marks a new era for ESG reporting across Europe (and globally). CSRD is the latest in a wave of new rules...more
7/26/2023
/ Climate Change ,
Corporate Governance ,
Corporate Social Responsibility ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
EU ,
EU Directive ,
Member State ,
Portfolio Companies ,
Private Equity ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Sustainability ,
Sustainable Business Practices
On June 26, 2023, the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) released its first two standards for sustainability disclosures, which are designed to facilitate the disclosure of sustainability-related information...more
Trialogue negotiations have begun following the parliament’s vote.
On 1 June 2023, the European Parliament voted to adopt its initial negotiating position on the EU’s proposed Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence...more
The Commission has clarified requirements for financial product classifications and the definition of “sustainable investment” under the SFDR. ...more
5/24/2023
/ Alternative Investment Funds ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
European Supervisory Authorities (ESAs) ,
Financial Products ,
Investors ,
Market Participants ,
Marketing ,
Regulation Technical Standards (RTS) ,
SFDR ,
Sustainability ,
Sustainable Business Practices ,
UCITS
The government has announced the launch of ESG standards to help companies transition to renewable energy.
On 11 April 2023, the Malaysian government announced that it will introduce a framework on environmental, social,...more
The consultation seeks feedback on its “measures-based approach” to classifying industrial activities, as well as “Do No Significant Harm” criteria.
The Green Finance Industry Taskforce (GFIT) was convened by the...more
The EU’s latest initiative to enhance ESG disclosures will expand the requirements of earlier initiatives and bring considerably more companies within its scope.
On 5 January 2023, the Corporate Sustainability Reporting...more
Latham lawyers highlight key takeaways and developments in the sustainability space from the second half of the year.
...more
12/22/2022
/ Antitrust Provisions ,
Climate Change ,
Consultation ,
Corporate Governance ,
Corporate Social Responsibility ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) ,
Forced Labor ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Investment Funds ,
Sustainability
From 2024 at the earliest, more European and global companies will need to disclose their ESG activities in greater detail.
On 10 November 2022, the European Parliament adopted a final version of the Corporate...more
11/18/2022
/ Corporate Counsel ,
Corporate Governance ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
EU ,
EU Directive ,
European Commission ,
European Parliament ,
Financial Reporting ,
Sustainability ,
Sustainable Business Practices
Hong Kong’s Core Climate aims to facilitate trading of carbon credits, while the Hub plans to expedite Singapore’s ESG ecosystem growth.
On 28 October 2022, the Hong Kong Exchange and Clearing Limited (HKEX) launched Core...more
11/8/2022
/ Carbon Off-Set Credits ,
Climate Change ,
Corporate Governance ,
Corporate Social Responsibility ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
FinTech ,
Hong Kong ,
Hong Kong Stock Exchange ,
Singapore ,
Stock Exchange ,
Trading Platforms
The FCA hopes the proposals will protect consumer trust in ESG-related financial products and help consumers navigate the increasingly complex ESG-related financial market.
On 25 October 2022, the UK’s Financial Conduct...more
This Client Alert probes the ESG “materiality assessment” process, why it is a misnomer, when and how the assessment can be conducted, and legal and practical tips for conducting the assessment.
Companies have been...more
The call highlights the challenges in developing alignment between global ESG reporting standards.
The European Central Bank (ECB) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF), two of the world’s leading public financial...more
8/22/2022
/ Climate Change ,
Corporate Governance ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
EU ,
European Central Bank ,
IFRS ,
IMF ,
International Regulatory Standards ,
Net Zero ,
Regulatory Standards ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Sustainable Finance ,
Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD)
The FCA emphasised the increasing prevalence of providers and the potential harm from lack of regulation in this area.
In June 2022, the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) issued a Feedback Statement in response to a...more
The Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive expands the existing sustainability reporting requirements and brings more companies under its scope.
On 21 June 2022, the European Parliament and European Council reached...more
6/24/2022
/ Audits ,
Certification Requirements ,
Compliance ,
Compliance Dates ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
EU ,
EU Directive ,
European Council ,
European Parliament ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Sustainability ,
Sustainable Business Practices
The move follows a number of similar standards that regulators and governments across the globe have proposed. With effect from 1 June 2022, the Guidance for Enterprise ESG Disclosure (the Guidance), published by...more
6/16/2022
/ Accounting Standards ,
China ,
Climate Change ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Corporate Governance ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
New Guidance ,
SASB ,
Supply Chain ,
Sustainability ,
Sustainable Business Practices ,
Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD)
The two new bodies are expected to help harmonise standards in different jurisdictions to meet investor demand for comparable ESG information.
On 27 April 2022, the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB)...more
A series of early-stage working papers provide insight into how a proposed EU legislation might expand companies’ ESG reporting obligations.
On 21 April 2021, the European Commission adopted the Corporate Sustainability...more
The Call for Evidence is one of a number of measures the EU is taking as it aims to strengthen the reliability of ESG ratings.
On 4 April 2022, the European Commission (Commission) published a call for evidence (Call for...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
India’s proposal includes accreditation requirements for ESG ratings providers and mandatory disclosure of providers’ data and information sources.
On 25 January 2022, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI)...more
The world’s largest asset manager stressed that sustainability issues will continue to be fundamental to companies’ long-term economic outlook.
On 17 January 2022, Larry Fink, the founder and chief executive of...more
Market participants can expect the initiative’s proposals to offer guidance on setting targets for emissions reduction and decarbonisation.
On 12 January 2021, the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) published its...more
The policies aim to provide crucial guidance to public companies amid the growing importance of ESG in proxy voting.
In late 2021, Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) and Glass, Lewis & Co (Glass Lewis), the two...more
1/12/2022
/ Board of Directors ,
Climate Change ,
Corporate Governance ,
Diversity and Inclusion Standards (D&I) ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Glass Lewis ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) ,
Proxy Season ,
Proxy Voting Guidelines ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD)
Dealmakers should continue to weigh the impact of ESG issues on M&A deals as ESG standards evolve.
Environmental, social, and governance (ESG) issues have become increasingly important for corporates in recent years,...more
1/11/2022
/ Acquisitions ,
Climate Change ,
Corporate Governance ,
Data Privacy ,
Diversity and Inclusion Standards (D&I) ,
Due Diligence ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
EU ,
Green Finance ,
Human Rights ,
IFRS ,
Indemnification Clauses ,
Mergers ,
Modern Slavery Act ,
Private Equity ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Representations and Warranties ,
Supply Chain ,
Sustainability ,
UK