Clifford Chance-repped Shell has won an appeal to overturn an earlier ruling that required the oil giant to cut its greenhouse gas emissions by 45 per cent by the end of the decade. The case goes back to 2018 when Dutch environmental organisation Milieudefensie (also known as Friends of the Earth Netherlands) alongside six other […]
The world’s climate ambitions took a serious hit last week. With Donald Trump poised to return to the White House, there’s a strong chance the US will once again pull out of the Paris Agreement. This would leave the goal of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius in jeopardy as the world’s largest economy […]
As firms increasingly seek to impress clients with their ESG know-how, Freshfields staff are being asked to take mandatory training on environmental topics. Over the 2024/25 financial year, the firm will roll out a global environmental training module that is compulsory for all staff, partners and new joiners. The training will be delivered online and […]
The US firm’s connections with the Tesla tycoon, its tech-first approach and “Silicon Valley” share model is giving it an edge in the crowded energy transition sector.
First, there was the Brabners Bog, and now Mills & Reeve – or should we say Reeds? – has got itself a wetland. It has partnered up with longstanding client Albanwise Environment on a nature recovery project in west Norfolk. Home to threatened species including otters, dragonflies and wildfowl, the Stoke Ferry wetland is positioned […]
The UK’s top 20 firms logged the equivalent of 2,407 more trips around the world in 2023 than they did in 2022, as business travel surged post-pandemic. According to Companies House data, these firms in 2022 collectively emitted 25,766 tCO2e from business travel – the equivalent of driving 65.9 million miles in a typical petrol-powered […]
Clyde & Co has transformed all its corporate loan facilities into sustainability-linked loans, providing a financial incentive to achieve its greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets. The firm first switched its credit facility with Barclays to a sustainability-linked credit facility in May 2023, which means the interest rate changes depending on whether or not Clydes meets […]
The legal industry must create stricter and more innovative policies to make up for the currently unaccounted-for travel-related emissions.
Planning permission to build a new coal mine in Cumbria has been quashed following today’s High Court ruling that the approval was unlawful. Leigh Day secured the win on behalf of Friends of the Earth and South Lakes Action on Climate Change (SLACC). The pair made the claim regarding a December 2022 decision to grant […]
One of the many challenges facing the new Labour government is deciding whether to immediately ban all new North Sea oil and gas exploration, including those currently in the licensing process. There is already talk of potential legal action from frustrated bidders. This situation offers oil and gas companies – and their professional advisors, including […]
Kingsley Napley has saved £149,500 in a year, after implementing an initiative that saw it shut half of its six floors on Fridays when most staff work from home. The scheme, first reported in The Lawyer last summer, is called “The Building that Shrinks and Grows”, and sees the firm turn off the lighting, heating, […]
Gowling WLG has introduced a “sustainable events challenge” aimed at reducing the environmental and social impact of its get-togethers. The challenge encourages hosts of both internal and client-facing events to adopt at least five sustainable practices from a checklist spanning food and drink, waste and resources, suppliers, inclusivity, travel, and engagement. Suggestions include opting for […]