A now-familiar playbook for climate-denying state attorneys general is to launch burdensome investigations of climate-minded corporate enterprises based on inchoate antitrust claims (often conspicuously lacking a profit motive for the alleged antitrust violations). These enforcement tactics crystallize two challenges for corporate climate initiatives seeking to steer clear of antitrust liability. […]
Cynthia Hanawalt
25 posts
Climate alliances have become a common target of antitrust campaigns over the last several years, particularly given the complex market dynamics for these alliances to navigate, with effective industry-wide transformation often necessitating some degree of coordination among competitors. In previous blog posts, we have addressed state legislatures’ efforts to undermine […]
In recent years, roughly 30 nations have implemented regulatory regimes that mandate some type of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions disclosure from corporations. As GHG emissions disclosure regimes continue to take hold, several key questions arise: will they prompt meaningful and sustained GHG emissions reductions, or will they merely serve to […]
With anti-ESG forces ascendant in national government, and federal agencies neglecting or outright reversing even modest regulatory efforts to address climate risks, fossil-fuel industry supporters have expanded their agenda at the state level. Through 100+ statehouse bills introduced this year, the anti-ESG agenda has moved beyond an initial targeting of […]
Commentators who advocate either for or against corporate and asset managers addressing climate risks often refer to “fiduciary duty” as justification for their claims. Yet no field of corporate or asset management actually imposes one standalone fiduciary duty. Nor do any two business-law fields impose the same fiduciary regime. […]
For a second time, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has passed the buck on its landmark climate disclosure rule, entitled The Enhancement and Standardization of Climate-Related Disclosures for Investors. The rule, finalized just last year, remains in legal limbo, as neither the SEC nor the courts seem eager to […]
Under new leadership appointed by the Trump administration, federal agencies have weakened key regulations meant to protect the economy from the financial harms of climate change. Some of the targeted regulations seek to manage climate risk; others constrain corporate actions or investment strategies on a range of environmental, social, or […]
As the physical and economic harms of climate change accumulate, corporate managers have faced increasing pressure to reduce their companies’ greenhouse gas emissions and adapt their businesses to climate-related risks. In parallel, civil society organizations and activist investors have increasingly sought to compel private sector action on climate change, while […]