In a shifting landscape, NautaDutilh’s Sustainable Business & Climate Change team identifies the risks and opportunities, working with clients on future-proof solutions for the complex and interconnected challenges of responsible business conduct. We help our clients by joining forces with all stakeholders. And by proactively bringing our extensive knowledge and cross-sectoral experience to the table. We discuss not only the dot on the horizon, but also what may be found round corners. Areas of expertise include ESG risks and opportunities, climate change litigation, sustainable finance, and business human rights law.

We regularly discuss recent developments in this field with clients in roundtable settings and organise client events on a wide range of topics relating to sustainable business and climate change.

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Sustainable Business

It may be legal, but is it right? As companies feel increasing pressure from all stakeholders to act responsibly, responsible business conduct has firmly established itself as a top priority for boards and management. We believe that its importance as differentiator that adds value to brands, increases long-term profitability and mitigates financial, legal and reputational risks will grow in the years to come. Businesses will find that their social license to operate will increasingly depend not only on what they do, but also on how and why they do it. 

Responsible business conduct permeates all business operations. It begins with the integration of ESG principles and corporate governance because the tone at the top is of consequence. The role of in-house legal counsel will grow as soft law frameworks and human rights will increasingly yield ‘hard law’ by which corporates and their boards will be held accountable. Transparency in communication, product information and reporting matters.

Ultimately, responsible business conduct strengthens shareholder value. Responsible business conduct is the best measure to maintain access to capital from institutional investors and financial institutions, who apply increasingly rigorous vetting of companies on non-financial criteria.

In order to help clients gain insight into how ESG principles benefit the company, our team of experts speaks with the board and other stakeholders throughout businesses to discuss possible long-term scenarios, assess ESG related business risks and provide recommendations to mitigate these risks. We have developed an ESG Opportunity Audit through which we are able to assess how ESG policies can help clients to capture commercial opportunities and positively distinguish themselves from their competitors.

Climate Change & Climate Change Litigation

Climate change, the energy transition, the huge mitigation and adaption efforts that will be required to combat the worst-case scenarios in the course of this century and the resulting resource scarcity are going to reshape our world. For many companies, climate action has become a business imperative. It requires multinationals and financial institutions to reimagine business models and reinvent their interaction with employees, shareholders, suppliers and customers.

Legal issues around climate change go beyond compliance and risk mitigation. For those companies that want to be part of the solution, climate change is also about opportunity. Our firm wants to be active on the frontlines in the fight against climate change. The law can be an instrument for change.

In the financial sector, regulators are increasingly outspoken with respect to the climate risk responsibilities and reporting obligations of financial institutions. Clients benefit from our firm’s unparalleled experience in regulated markets. Our financial law team regularly advises financial institutions on the regulatory aspects of climate change. Our loan finance team is helping lenders and borrowers to structure green finance deals. They have extensive experience on getting banks comfortable with regulatory uncertainty, specific business risks associated with decentralised renewable energy projects and forging the security packages that fit such projects.

Our Dispute Resolution team members are considered trailblazers in climate litigation, setting legal precedents for government accountability for climate change. We successfully represented (together with Höcker Advocaten) the Dutch NGO Urgenda before the Dutch Supreme Court in the landmark case against the Dutch government. The Supreme Court confirmed that the Dutch government has a binding legal obligation, based on international human rights law, to take measures to reduce carbon emissions. “This landmark ruling provides a clear path forward for concerned individuals in Europe – and around the world – to undertake climate litigation in order to protect human rights,” commented United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet in her reaction to the Urgenda judgment.

Business Human Rights

Responsible business conduct entails that companies view adherence to human rights throughout their business value chain as a key element of their governance. Not respecting human rights is not only a severe reputational risk. Adverse human rights impacts can also lead to extensive legal liability. It requires businesses to implement policies aimed at mitigating human rights compliance and litigation risks into their daily operations. The legal dimension can include supply chain issues, contractual obligations, regulatory requirements and reporting guidelines. In the context of an M&A transaction, an ESG due diligence can be an important means to assess risks and opportunities. Our multidisciplinary team oversees the full field of work and works with our clients not only to do things right, but also to do the right thing.