ESG, Climate & Sustainability

Environmental Compliance, Including Mitigating Greenwashing Threats

• Representing numerous clients in the chemicals sector in regulatory engagements on the sustainability of their chemistries, advocating a science-led approach to sustainable chemistry.
• Advising on contracting structures for carbon reduction and corporate offsetting projects.
• Counselling brands and retailers on green claims for products; successfully defending the developer of a new recycling technology from an investigation into 'greenwashing' for 'recycling' claims.

Greenhouse Emissions/CBAM

• Representing a global manufacturing business on its engagement with governmental authorities for errors discovered in the calculation and mandatory reporting of greenhouse gas emissions.
• Advising an energy client on exposure to climate change risk from the supply chain and supporting a review of supply chain greenhouse gas emissions.
• Providing legal support for companies seeking market access for clean technologies and sustainable products, including greener fuels, alternative refrigerant gases, and recycled materials.
• Advising on contracting structures for carbon reduction and corporate offsetting projects.
• Assisting one of the top 50 largest private companies in the US in conducting an ESG assessment focused on greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.
• Provided a Fortune 50 company a trade and climate analysis with respect to four countries to enable the client to select the optimal suppliers for its steel and aluminum needs in the US. The analysis covered Paris Agreement commitments, current and projected climate-related regulatory regimes, the carbon intensity of steel and aluminum production processes, and geopolitical factors.
• Assisted a large company in the renewable energy sector in development and execution a legal, policy and advocacy strategy to strengthen their low carbon US supply chain and promote re-shoring and friend-shoring.
• Provided a government with a comprehensive analysis on possible U.S. legislative and regulatory climate measures, including: likely components of such measures; a comparison of the measures on a host of factors, such as WTO consistency, administrability, and likely trade impacts; potential pathways to enactment; the politics of climate in the United States; and options to mitigate the possible impacts.

Employment-Related Audits

• Conducting an assessment for a global financial institution on workplace culture issues.
• Representing clients in connection with audits and investigations by US regulators into alleged hiring discrimination.

Forced Labor

• Advised a major US retailer on forced labor compliance, XUAR-related WROs, detention risks, related sanctions and export control risks, and the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA).
• Advised a multinational conglomerate of cross-industry luxury brands on forced labor compliance, including civil and criminal penalties under Section 307 and related statutes and implementing regulations, as well as under trade controls and sanctions regulations.
• Advised a government client on forced labor considerations, including criteria for designation, options for challenging a designation, and methodology for securing release of goods that have been withheld.
• Assisted a fashion group in relation to EU supply chain due diligence initiatives and EU guidelines for voluntary measures in this context, specifically focused on forced labor issues.
• Drafted and reviewed forced labor certifications and supplier questionnaires.
• Advised a large manufacturer to help document the absence of forced labor in a company's supply chain.

ESG-Driven Litigation

• Defended numerous clients in individual and class action litigation alleging greenwashing.