Rising geopolitical risk is forcing investors, companies and regulators to confront how defence, security and strategic infrastructure fit within ESG frameworks that were built for a very different global environment.
The UK competition agency says that businesses may be deemed to be making an environmental claim not only through marketing or packaging, but also by repeating claims made by others in the supply chain – or by omitting information.
Former senior US officials – including John Podesta and Jennifer Granholm – and other interested parties have filed a series of amicus briefs urging the Ninth Circuit to revive a youth-led constitutional challenge to President Donald Trump’s fossil fuel executive orders.
The EU’s Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation has had little impact on redirecting investment flows or improving portfolio sustainability, according to a new study published by the National Bureau of Economic Research.
Environmental groups have filed an amicus brief in support of California’s clean car and truck standards, as the state and a coalition of others challenge the Trump administration’s attempt to revoke long-standing emissions waivers under the Clean Air Act.
The European Commission’s delegated act simplifying EU Taxonomy reporting has been published in the Official Journal – with the changes applying retrospectively to the 2025 financial year.
Outlook 2026: Contributors examine how litigation, regulatory divergence, NGO action and evolving trade dynamics are reshaping business and human rights obligations worldwide in 2026.
Outlook for 2026: contributors examine how recalibrated EU frameworks, product-based regulations and forced labour bans are reshaping corporate accountability, governance and investment decisions across global supply chains.
Outlook 2026: Silke Goldberg, partner and global head of ESG at Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer, argues that rising geopolitical risk is forcing a rethink of ESG frameworks, with defence and security increasingly integral to long-term sustainability and societal resilience.
Outlook 2026: from human rights accountability in Japan to fragmented disclosure regimes in Europe, public-interest ownership models and expanding board responsibilities in Canada, corporate governance expectations are diverging but intensifying worldwide.
Outlook 2026: Leading practitioners explore how accountability for climate commitments, risk resilience, whistleblowing and nature-related issues will redefine board oversight and decision-making in the US and UK.
Outlook 2026: As regulators sharpen enforcement powers and NGOs deploy increasingly sophisticated strategies, companies face rising exposure across green claims, human rights, fraud and emerging technologies.
Outlook 2026: In part two of our focus on regulation, leading practitioners assess how recalibration, rather than retreat, will shape ESG risk across Europe, the UK and beyond in 2026.
This year marked a turning point for sustainability regulation, with bold legislative ambitions being recalibrated under economic and political pressure. But what does this mean for companies and what will they need to focus on going into 2026, asks Emma Bichet, partner-elect at Cooley, and Jack Eastwood, associate.
Climate transition plans are a key tool in translating companies’ broad climate goals into tangible actions – and being transparent on your transition planning process can help your company to mitigate the risk of greenwashing claims, writes Jill Shaw, ESG and sustainability lead at A&L Goodbody, Dublin.
Recent reforms to fraud and corporate liability law in the UK mean environmental and other ESG failures now carry significantly higher criminal risk for companies. Analysis by Tom McNeill, partner at BCL Solicitors in London.
As Canada’s Teck Resources eyes a US$53 billion tie-up with rival miner Anglo-American, Teck’s former general counsel and chief sustainability officer Charlene Ripley talks to Forward Law Review about her career so far – and the evolution of her understanding of corporate sustainability.
The government has responded to parliamentary calls for tougher action on forced labour, but its plans stop short of major legislative reform. Analysis from Richard Reichman, partner, and Christina Josephides, senior associate, at BCL Solicitors in London.
As the electrotech revolution gathers pace, market forces, consumer choices and grid upgrades will shape whether the UK turns technological promise into real progress, writes Lewis McDonald, partner and co-head of the global energy practice at Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer.
Canada’s 2025 Budget proposes easing greenwashing compliance by repealing key 2024 Competition Act provisions and restoring the Competition Bureau’s gatekeeper role for challenging environmental claims, writes Beth Riley, partner at McMillan in Calgary.
As ESG faces its toughest backlash in 15 years, all businesses in every jurisdiction are under pressure to prove that sustainability in fact delivers returns. Analysis by Ruth Knox, chair of the ESG & sustainable finance practice at Paul Hastings in London.
EU law does not prevent member states from requiring individuals requesting access to environmental information to provide their name and postal address, says the ECJ – provided such requirements comply with core principles of EU law.
Climate litigation continued to grow worldwide in 2025, with more than 3,400 cases now tracked globally, according to a new report from the Sabin Center for Climate Change Law – even as the pace of new filings slowed compared with recent years.
A group of environmental law NGOs led by Opportunity Green has made a submission to the House of Commons Environmental Audit Committee, arguing that rapidly rising electricity demand from the sector risks undermining statutory climate targets.
The European Securities and Markets Authority has published a second thematic note on sustainability-related claims, extending its supervisory guidance beyond ESG credentials to the way ESG strategies are described and communicated to investors.
