backESG Top Five - News and Updates
At King & Spalding, we are advising our clients on ESG issues every day. We are tackling our clients’ most pressing ESG matters and doing so while collaborating across industries and practice areas. Our attorneys in Corporate, Finance and Investments; Government Matters; and Trial and Global Disputes are actively involved and ready to help our clients in this fast-moving area. Below are a few of the ESG issues, topics and developments that we have been thinking about so far in August.
BlackRock ESG Activity
BlackRock supports fewer environmental, social, and climate related shareholder proposals against companies this year (down to 22% support from 47% last year), as the quality of the proposals declined and companies climate-related efforts ramped up. BlackRock noted that many of the shareholder resolutions were “unduly constraining on management” and “overly prescriptive”. More »
K&S Advises on GM's First Green Bond Offering
GM completed its first green bond offering of $2.25 billion aggregate principal amount. GM expects to allocate the net proceeds to clean transportation solutions: investments (including equity investments in joint ventures) and expenditures for the design, development or manufacture of clean transportation technology and enabling solutions. K&S advised GM on the offering and the establishment of its Sustainability Finance Framework. More »
SEC's Enhanced Human Capital Disclosure Rules
Analysis of the SEC’s recent enhanced human capital disclosure rules suggests that the disclosures are varied, not easily comparable or useful, and similar to other disclosures in all but the most human capital intensive industries. More »
Electric Vehicles Power Up with Starbucks
Starbucks announces it will add charging stations at Starbucks stores stretching on a 1,350 mile route from Colorado to Seattle. More »
ESG-Focused Funds
Asset managers are increasingly relying on ESG focused funds in fixed income investments and equities, raising from 42% in 2021 to 76% in 2022 for fixed income and from 53% to 74% in equities. More »
In Case You Missed It - K&S on ESG
In case you missed them, linked below are some recent articles and analysis from King & Spalding on particular ESG-related legal developments.
- NOAA Interactive Tool Features Community-Level Natural Disaster Risk Mapping
- West Virginia v. EPA: The Forecast is Cloudy for Environmental and Agency Regulation
- Hydrogen-Related Provisions of the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022
- The Inflation Reduction Act Clears the Senate
King & Spalding partner Liz Morgan is moderating a Q&A with SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce on August 23 in Houston at an event hosted by the Texas General Counsel Forum. The focus of the event is on the SEC’s proposed climate change disclosure rules but will ultimately cover a variety of topics. Watch for a summary of the takeaways in a future edition of the Top Five.