Climate Change and Environmental, Social and Corporate Governance

We counsel clients on a wide range of issues related to climate change, including ESG reporting, regulatory compliance, permitting, and government contracting. The changing climate, and the rapidly evolving legal, policy and investment responses to it, have complex and diverse implications for businesses across industries. For instance, some companies will face challenges complying with more stringent emissions regulations, while others must reconsider investment opportunities. Climate change is also influencing the priorities of government in the United States and internationally, making increased enforcement and compliance essential to business planning for many regulated entities. We have the depth of experience and flexibility to assist clients across industries as they adapt to the impacts of climate change and the broad implications for their operations. When complex issues arise, our environmental lawyers work with experienced corporate governance, real estate, government contracts, financing, public policy and appellate teams to provide clients with holistic legal support and counsel.

Environmental, Social and Corporate Governance (ESG) Obligations
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Companies must increasingly disclose legal and business risks presented by climate change (for example, the impact of sea level rise on a company’s business operations and assets, or effects of more stringent emissions regulations on long-term business planning). This focus on ESG disclosure stems both from changing legal obligations and investor pressure: in fact, investors report that they increasingly find ESG risks to be as important as financial statements and other traditional metrics to their investment decisions and valuations.

We help clients:

Establish a schedule and method for voluntary and mandatory ESG disclosures—and climate-related disclosures in particular—that meet regulator, investor and other stakeholder demands.

Respond to evolving requirements for disclosure from the US Securities and Exchange Commission and other entities, and determine the materiality standard for disclosures.

Promote consistency among climate risk disclosures and other financial disclosures.
Regulatory and Compliance Counseling
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With our deep experience interpreting complex regulatory requirements and developing strategies for compliance, we can help companies navigate rapidly changing federal, state and international climate-focused regulations and guidance—many of which are also likely to take into consideration environmental justice evaluations.

We help clients:

Participate in rulemakings to help shape policy on emerging issues.

Ensure projects take advantage of state and federal incentives for low- or zero-emissions technologies and facilitate opportunities for public-private partnerships in renewable development.

Comply with US Federal Trade Commission, Environmental Protection Agency, and state consumer protection laws and regulations related to environmental advertising and marketing (“green” claims), as well as industry benchmarks and best practices.

Comply with increasingly stringent restrictions on carbon emissions.
Project Permitting, Siting and Development
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As clients will be increasingly required to analyze the climate impacts of their projects, our team is well positioned to help. Developers have relied on our counsel in the siting, permitting and development of many significant utility-scale conventional and renewable energy projects, including oil and natural gas pipelines; electric transmission lines; recreational, residential and commercial real estate developments; and public buildings, facilities, roads and bridges.

We help clients:

Navigate complex oil and gas permitting hurdles and stakeholder engagement related to climate change impacts.

Develop strategies for measuring the social cost of a project’s carbon emissions.

Ensure that project plans comply with energy and environmental laws and meet requirements under wildlife protection statutes.

Interface with all relevant US federal and state regulatory agencies to complete environmental reviews, obtain permit and initiate projects.
Government Contracting
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The US government identifies climate change as a national security issue, and federal agencies have been directed to “prioritize action on climate change” in contracting and procurement efforts across all sectors of the economy. This focus has particularly strong impacts on the defense industry, as contractors will need to demonstrate sustainability of their internal practices and across their supply chain. State governments also have taken an active role in accounting for climate change and environmental impacts when contracting for public projects, and have undertaken efforts to mandate the procurement of renewable energy. We have a robust Government Contracts team ready to assist, headed by a former general counsel of the Department of Defense and the Central Intelligence Agency and a former manager of the in-house litigation/bid protest group for a multinational government contractor.

We help clients:

Assess climate change as it affects government contracts, including performance-based contracts.

Navigate the full range of other issues related to government contracts, providing a broad view of how climate change assessments relate.

Participate in offshore lease auctions and procurement processes for clean energy, including offshore wind, and negotiate related long-term contracts.