The Enforcement Climate is Changing for ESG Disclosures

Businesses and investment firms worldwide are rushing to embrace the use of Environmental, Social, and Corporate Governance (ESG) factors to educate investors, customers, and vendors about their commitment to addressing climate change and other significant societal harms. But recent actions by regulators and other law enforcement authorities in the United States and Europe demonstrate that companies choosing to make such statements must act with the same rigor and care as with their financial disclosures, lest they find themselves the target of a “first of its kind” enforcement action.