28 November 2022, London – Directors of Philippine for-profit corporations must take into consideration climate change-related risks in the discharge of their fiduciary duties of obedience and diligence to fulfil their companies’ long-term legal, economic, moral and social obligations towards their shareholders and other stakeholders. Directors must do so in order to abide by the…

29 July 2022 - The Climate Governance Initiative (CGI), in collaboration with the Commonwealth Climate and Law Initiative (CCLI), today is proud to issue the second edition to the Primer on Climate Change: Directors’ Duties and Disclosure Obligations. This edition provides the latest information for board members around the world on their legal obligations in…

26 July 2022 - Directors of Malaysian companies are legally required to incorporate climate change considerations into their decision-making processes, according to a legal opinion released on 26 July 2022. A failure to do so may be a breach of a director’s legal duties and could expose them to litigation from shareholders or enforcement action from the regulatory authorities.  Tan…

1 November 2021 – Directors of Hong Kong-incorporated companies are obliged to take climate risk into account in the discharge of their obligations to the company or face the potential for personal liability, warns a new legal opinion. Commissioned by the Commonwealth Climate and Law Initiative (CCLI), the legal opinion, 'Directors’ Duties and Disclosure…

20 October 2021 – Directors of Delaware companies could face civil liability for failing to consider climate change, warns a new legal analysis from the Commonwealth Climate and Law Initiative. The executive summary of the legal analysis can be read here, and the full paper is available here. The new legal analysis finds that,…

16 September 2021 – Directors of Indian companies could face civil or penal liability for failing to consider climate change, warns a new legal opinion from Mr. Shyam Divan, a Senior Advocate who practices before the Supreme Court of India. Indian law requires directors to act in the best interests of the environment, which…

24 June 2021 – A new legal Primer produced jointly by the Commonwealth Climate and Law Initiative and the Climate Governance Initiative (CGI), examines the fast-changing landscape of climate risks and opportunities for business, and the implications for board directors’ legal obligations. The Primer on Climate Change: Directors’ Duties and Disclosure Obligations, which examines 20…

26 May 2021 - Canadian pension trustees are the latest to receive a warning that they must consider climate change as part of their legal responsibilities, joining their peers in the UK, Australia and South Africa that have been put on notice in recent years by influential legal opinions. The Canada Climate Law Initiative has…

14 April 2021 - Company directors in Singapore could face personal liability if they fail to take action to  address climate change risks, according to a new legal opinion by a team of independent legal  counsel.  The legal analysis found that Singaporean directors are obliged to consider climate change  impacts as part of their duties…

government to the federal Greenhouse Gas Pollution Pricing Act, the CCLI’s Dr Janis Sarra published an op-ed in The Globe and Mail outlining why businesses want certainty on carbon pricing – not constitutional challenges.

Australia has followed the lead of Europe, the UK and Canada with the establishment of a new high-level collaboration of industry experts tasked with developing a sustainable finance roadmap for Australia’s economy.

To avoid the risk of inadequate disclosures which capture the attention of regulators and potential litigants, companies should be disclosing in accordance with the recommendations of the G20 Financial Stability Board’s Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures, argue CCLI Canada convenor Professor Cynthia Williams and Director Ellie Mulholland in a post on the Harvard Law…

CCLI South Africa convenor Christine Reddell recently featured on a panel on directors’ duties and climate change hosted by the Institute of Directors in Southern Africa.

CCLI Australian convenor Sarah Barker and advisory board member Dr John Purcell featured in an INTHEBLACK article on the increasingly tough scrutiny company directors face over how they recognise and account for climate change risk.