Overview

Environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors are at the top of many agendas, and are increasingly being integrated into organizational decision-making.

More than ever, organizations are looking to create value through sustainable investment as well as investments in their own governance processes. At the same time, there is increasing pressure on organizations to ensure they adequately evaluate, mitigate and report on environmental and social risks. Many of these ESG factors are transitioning from voluntary standards to legal obligations, with many of them already embedded in regulatory regimes across Canada and internationally.

We help clients navigate this dynamic landscape, advising not only on the leading trends but also on the specific requirements that impact an organization’s day-to-day operations and investments. Our interdisciplinary ESG team draws from our deep expertise in environmental, social and governance matters to help you seize ESG-related opportunities and minimize ESG-related risks. We bring together leading practitioners with experience in corporate governance, capital markets, banking and debt finance, climate change, environmental law, Indigenous matters, renewable energy, financial services, sustainable project finance, employment, and litigation and dispute resolution.

We regularly help clients with:

• incorporating ESG factors into board and management decision-making and policies;
• assessing an organization’s compliance with ESG standards and regulatory obligations, including on ESG-related disclosure and reporting requirements;
• assessing and mitigating ESG-related litigation risk, and responding to ESG-related claims, including before OECD contact points;
• evaluating and mitigating the impact of climate change risks, and seizing low carbon investment opportunities;
• investing in projects with positive social benefits, including projects with Indigenous community participation, and considering the perspective of those communities on ESG factors;
• considering the relationship between ESG standards, constitutionally protected Aboriginal and treaty rights and the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples;
• considering environmental, social and governance factors in transactional due diligence and investment decisions, and negotiating related transactional risks;
• developing green bonds and other sustainable financial products that aim to have positive environmental and social impacts;
• financing sustainable asset classes, including in renewable energy, energy storage and hydrogen; and
• developing and implementing executive compensation policies.