Wolters Kluwer: Sustainability & ESG Law

In November, Americans chose to send Donald Trump back to the Oval Office, and provided Republicans with majorities in the Senate and House. Despite narrow vote margins, the impacts in the ESG, climate, and energy realms promise to be quite significant...to say the least. Read about that and other ESG and sustainability developments occurring during November 2024. #TrumpAdminstration #IRA #ClimateRiskDisclosures #ClimateChange #CarbonEmissions #Greenwashing #VoluntaryCarbonMarkets

Contentious COP 29 concludes with wealthy countries reluctantly pledging $300 billion annually to help poorer nations battle climate crisis The climate summit, which had been dubbed the “climate finance COP,” ran two days over schedule with negotiating teams from the developed and developing worlds at odds over a final deal. COP 29 climate talks concluded this past weekend in Baku, Azerbaijan with developed countries begrudgingly committing to give at least $300 billion annually to help developing countries in their battle to adapt to climate change and transition away from fossil fuels. That’s up from the prior $100 billion annual goal set back in 2009. Delegates at the COP 29, formally the 29th Conference of Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change ( UNFCCC), reached their agreement after two weeks of intense negotiations. The agreement also includes a financing target funded by the world’s wealthy countries of “at least $1.3 trillion by 2035.” Poorer nations call the agreement “insulting.” Developing nations, who had sought over $1 trillion in assistance, called the agreement “insulting” and argued it did not give them the vital resources they required to truly address the complexities of the climate crisis, according to a release issued by the UN. Representatives for the least developed countries and the Alliance of Small Island States (AOIS) had walked out of the talks at one juncture, noted the UN. This story can be read in its entirety (no paywall) on the Wolters Kluwer Vital Law site at https://lnkd.in/g-_n8CkS. As reported by Brad Rosen. #COP29 #ClimateCrisis #ClimateFinanceCOP #Baku #UN 

Gensler will depart SEC in January The SEC Chair put to rest any speculation of an earlier exit from the agency. SEC Chair Gary Gensler ended any speculation that he would step down after Thanksgiving by announcing that he will leave his post January 20, at the time of the inauguration. The President-Elect had said during his campaign that he would “fire” Gensler on his first day in office, but that claim merely adhered to longstanding precedent that the head of the SEC steps aside when a different political party comes into power. Accomplishments. In the news release announcing his departure date, the agency outlined much of what the SEC accomplished under Gensler’s leadership. The list includes the highly controversial climate disclosure rules which are now being litigated in the Eighth Circuit, and whose future is murky given the change in Administrations. This story can be read in its entirety (no paywall) on the Wolters Kluwer Vital Law site at https://lnkd.in/g2y9WBp2. As reported by John Filar Atwood. #SEC #Gensler #ClimateRiskDisclosures

DOE commits up to $2.2 B for clean energy hydrogen hubs in the Midwest and Gulf Coast The Department of Energy says the hubs will create tens of thousands of high-quality jobs, deliver new economic opportunities, and reinforce the nation’s clean manufacturing boom. The Department of Energy announced up to $2.2 billion in award commitments for two regional clean hydrogen hubs in an effort to help accelerate the commercial-scale deployment of low-cost, clean hydrogen. As part of the H2Hubs program, DOE is committing up to $1.2 billion for the Gulf Coast Hydrogen Hub, which is led by HyVelocity (HyV), and up to $1 billion for the Midwest Hydrogen Hub, which is led by the Midwest Alliance for Clean Hydrogen LLC (MachH2). The funding is authorized under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. The commitment of these funds is part the current administration’s efforts to advance its clean energy agenda before handing over power to an incoming Trump Administration, which may not have a similar enthusiasm for the program. This story can be read in its entirety (no paywall) on the Wolters Kluwer Vital Law site at https://lnkd.in/g58Ji7Km. As reported by Brad Rosen. #CleanHydrogenEnergy #HydrogenHubs #DOE #BipartisanInfrastructureLaw #ClimateCrisis

Better Markets criticizes regulators for ignoring climate change risks The advocacy group warns that the agencies are failing to recognize the well-known risks of climate change. Financial regulators in the United States are failing to recognize the clear and well-known risks of climate change, according to banking industry advocacy group Better Markets. The group released a fact sheet that highlights the recent devastating hurricanes in the Southeastern U.S., which caused significant costs to small businesses, banks, insurers, and taxpayers. Insurers are increasingly withdrawing coverage in high-risk areas, leaving Main Street Americans and businesses vulnerable to losses from climate events. The fact sheet was authored by Better Markets Director of Banking Policy Shayna Olesiuk, who issued a statement in connection with the release of the fact sheet—which criticizes financial regulators for failing to recognize “clear, well-known climate risks.” Olesiuk noted the recent hurricanes “have caused unimaginable losses of human life in the Southeastern U.S. and also resulted in significant costs to Main Street Americans, small businesses, banks, insurers, and taxpayers.” This story can be read in its entirety on the Wolters Kluwer Vital Law site at https://lnkd.in/gUimAu32. As reported by Colleen M. Svelnis. #BetterMarkets #BankingPolicy #ClimateRisks #ExtremeWeatherEvents #HurricanMilton #InsuranceCoverage

  Trump announces Liberty Energy CEO Chris Wright to lead Department of Energy Wright, a strident advocate for the fossil fuel industry, recently stated “there is no climate crisis and we’re not in the midst of an energy transition either.” President-elect Donald Trump has announced that Chris Wright will be joining his administration as secretary of energy and will also serve as a member of the newly formed Council of National Energy. Wright currently serves as the CEO and Chairman of Liberty Energy, Inc., a successful hydraulic fracturing company he founded in 2011. This story can be read in its entirety (no paywall) on the Wolters Kluwer Vital Law site at https://lnkd.in/g4wNT5k4. As reported by Brad Rosen. #DOE #LibertyEnergy #ClimateCrisis #CleanEnergy #AmericanShaleRevolution #Fracking 

IOSCO finalizes best practice proposals for voluntary carbon markets While not legally binding, the recommendations aim to support sound VCM market structures, paving the way for orderly and transparent carbon credit trading, the group said. The International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) has released its final report on Voluntary Carbon Markets (VCMs), noting the markets could benefit from adopting attributes found in well-functioning capital markets, which it identified as immediacy, liquidity, transparency, price discovery, fairness, the creditworthiness of direct clearing participants, and the integrity of the market as a whole. This story can be read in its entirety (no paywall) on the Wolters Kluwer Vital Law site at https://lnkd.in/gdrr-2h5. As reported by Suzanne Cosgrove. #IOSCO #VoluntaryCarbonMarkets #CarbonCredits #CarbonEmissions 

Christine Moehler, a lawyer based in Zurich Switzerland, provides an overview of the Swiss Supreme Court's decision regarding the Czech Republic's arbitration with European investors over solar power sector reforms. Moehler delves into the Swiss Supreme Court's June 2024 ruling which upheld an arbitral award against the Czech Republic, compelling it to pay substantial damages to investors despite the state's jurisdictional objections based on the CJEU's Achmea decision. The author also explains how both the arbitral tribunal and the Swiss Supreme Court dismissed the Czech Republic's late jurisdictional challenge, emphasizing the importance of timely objections in arbitration proceedings. The blog post further explores the implications of this decision for the enforcement of intra-EU investment arbitration awards, particularly in light of ongoing legal debates in European law. You can read the article on Wolter Kluwer’s Vital Law Site at https://lnkd.in/gqARV9H4. #SolarPower #EU #InvestmentArbitration #InternationalLaw #DisputeResolution

Invesco advisers charged with making misleading statements   Invesco agreed to cease and desist from further violations, a censure, and will pay a $17.5 million civil penalty. The SEC has announced settled charges against Invesco Advisers, Inc., after finding that the registered investment adviser made misleading statements in certain marketing materials, in proposals to prospective clients, and to the boards of directors of funds it advised ( In the Matter of Invesco Advisers, Inc., Investment Advisers Act No. 6770 (Nov. 8, 2024)). According to the press release, the misleading statements concerned the company-wide percentage of assets under management by it and its affiliates in which environmental, social, and governance considerations (ESG integrated) were used in the decision-making processes. Invesco made those statements between approximately April 2020 and July 2022 with the marketing materials stating that between 70 and 94 percent of its parent company’s assets under management were ESG integrated. In reality, those percentages included assets held in ETFs which did not consider ESG factors in investment decisions. This story can be read in its entirety (no paywall) on the Wolters Kluwer Vital Law site (no paywall) at https://lnkd.in/g6sqtZqm.   As reported by R. Jason Howard, J.D. #SEC #MisleadingStatements #ESGAssets #ESGIntegration 

2024 is ‘virtually certain’ to be the warmest year on record according to the Copernicus Climate Change Service Notably, temperatures for the year are expected to be 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels for the first time ever, exceeding a critical target set forth in the Paris Agreement. With ten months having gone by this year, it is now virtually certain that 2024 will be the warmest year on record and the first year of more than 1.5ºC above pre-industrial levels, according to a recent release from the Copernicus Climate Change Service. Samantha Burgess, Deputy Director with Copernicus, stated, “This marks a new milestone in global temperature records and should serve as a catalyst to raise ambition for the upcoming Climate Change Conference, COP29." This story can be read in its entirety (no paywall) on the Wolters Kluwer Vital Law site at https://lnkd.in/g5RiYBiC. As reported by Brad Rosen. #CopernicusClimateChangeService #EU #ClimateChange #COP29 #ParisAgreement