On 24 July 2024, the European Securities and Markets Authority (“ESMA”) published an opinion on the sustainable finance regulatory framework (the “ESMA Opinion”), which outlines the ESMA’s long-term vision for the functioning of the EU’s sustainable finance framework (the “Framework”). The ESMA Opinion builds on the findings of the ESMA’s progress report on greenwashing,
A major overhaul of the UK’s planning (zoning) system was unveiled on 30 July. This is aimed at tackling the UK’s chronic housing shortage, as well as the challenge of net zero. The lack of affordable housing in the south-east of England, for example, means that average house prices there are ten times the average
According to the Grantham Institute’s 2024 Global Trends in Climate Change Litigation Policy Report (the “Report”) – which was published on 27 June 2024 – climate-related litigation against private sector actors continues to be on the rise. The Report highlights that over 230 climate-related lawsuits have been initiated against corporations and trade associations since 2015,
Deforestation is now the second leading cause of climate change globally, after burning fossil fuels, and is responsible for around 11% of all greenhouse gas emissions. In the last 60 years more than half of tropical forests worldwide have been destroyed, reducing biodiversity and endangering rare species (see Fifth Special Report of Session – 2023-24:
The Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2024/1700 supplementing Regulation (EU) 2017/2402 with regard to regulatory technical standards (“RTS”) was adopted on June 18, 2024. These RTS set out the content, methods and presentation of information in relation to the principal adverse impacts (“PAIs”) of the assets financed by the underlying exposures on sustainability factors for securitizations
The First Civil Senate of the German Federal Court of Justice, which is in charge of competition law, has ruled that advertising with an ambiguous environmental term (here: “climate neutral”) is generally only lawful if the specific meaning of the relevant term is explained in the advertising itself.
Judgment of June 27, 2024 – I
After the results of the European elections, where the presidential political party lost a significant number of seats at the European Parliament, the president of the French Republic Emmanuel Macron decided to dissolve the National Assembly. This dissolution was effected by the presidential “Decree of June 9, 2024 dissolving the National Assembly“, which was
Multinational companies are facing increased pressure to ensure that they have adequate ESG-related policies in place and (more importantly) that they are implementing those policies in practice within both their business and associated supply chains via appropriate systems and controls. Companies that are found not to have implemented or adhered to those policies face increased
Japan is considering whether to require all of its primary listed companies to publish an annual sustainability report which substantively conforms with the standards issued by the IFRS’ International Sustainability Standards Board (“ISSB”). The new mandatory disclosure rule would be applied in phases based on the size of market capitalization, with the biggest companies planned
On 3 June 2024, the Asia Pacific Loan Market Association (“APLMA”) published its set of “Model Provisions for Green Loans” (“Model Provisions”), following the publication of the “Draft Provisions for Sustainability-Linked Loans” by the London-based Loan Market Association (“LMA”) a year earlier in May 2023. The markets expect that the Model Provisions will bring some