Find a lawyerOur capabilitiesYour career
Locations
Our capabilities
News

Select language:

Locations
Our capabilities
News

Select language:

hamburger menu showcase image
  1. Our capabilities
  2. Environment, social and governance
  3. Environment and climate
Environment and climate
hero-image-0
At Freshfields, we help businesses navigate the fast-changing environmental and climate landscape with confidence

Our global team combines technical expertise and strategic insight to address complex challenges, advise clients on regulatory and policy issues, advocacy and engagement, as well as helping them develop and deliver effective, scalable environmental and climate strategies.

Our approach is proactive, supporting businesses build resilience and deliver on their commitments. We assist clients in identifying key priorities, navigating new compliance obligations, engaging on regulatory and policy developments and managing evolving governance, stakeholder and investor expectations.

As a full-service practice, we advise on every aspect of environmental, health and safety and climate change law.  From securing necessary permits and permissions to managing operational compliance and clean-up liability allocation, we are on hand to help.  In addition to the traditional areas of pollution, contamination, waste, chemicals, substance controls and safety, we have deep expertise in energy efficiency and greenhouse gas emissions regimes, the energy transition, renewables, carbon projects and offsetting, as well as biodiversity and the use of natural resources.

Our expertise spans helping strategics, investors and developers assess and manage environmental risks in M&A and financing deals, through to the design and delivery of transformational projects.

Moreover, the role of business in mitigating the threat of climate change has brought environmental performance into sharp focus: from increasing scrutiny of corporate sustainability claims to transition risks associated with decarbonising society, organisations are being held to account by governments, regulators, consumers and investors. Our team also advises on all aspects of environmental disputes, including risk management and litigation preparedness, crisis management and response, defence of litigation or quasi-judicial claims and enforcement actions. We support clients facing climate and environmental risks, potential greenwashing allegations, challenges to environmental projects, supply‑chain and operational issues, and human rights impacts.

Related capabilities
Environment, social and governance
ESG driven transactions and projects
Energy transition
ESG governance and strategy
ESG litigation and crisis management
Sustainability regulatory developments

Highlight experience

Contacts

Contacts

Düsseldorf
Juliane HilfPartner
London
Douglas BrydenPartner
London
Vanessa JakovichPartner
New York
John RousakisPartner
London
Charlotte AspinSenior Associate
London
Simon DuncombePartner
London
Cat Greenwood-SmithPartner
Our thinking

Our thinking

Jan 30 2026
7 ESG trends to watch in 2026
For those involved in ESG, 2025 brought significant disruption, marked by political uncertainty, regulatory delays and rollbacks,...
Jan 29 2026
The Bonaire Climate Case: Dutch State ordered to comply with reduction obligations and to adopt a climate adaptation plan
On 28 January 2026, the District Court of The Hague (the Court) delivered its long-awaited judgment in the climate case brought by...
Jan 13 2026
What firms need to know about the PRA’s updated expectations on climate-related risks
On 3 December 2025, the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) published its Policy Statement PS25/25 on managing climate-related risks,...
Dec 19 2025
Austria’s New Electricity Act Unlocking flexibility: active customers, energy sharing and direct lines (3/3)
Austria’s energy landscape is on the verge of a significant transformation: On December 11, 2025, the Austrian Parliament passed the...
Dec 19 2025
The ‘E‘ of ESG: Environmental Omnibus published
On 10 December 2025, the Commission published its Environmental Omnibus, a comprehensive package designed to simplify certain...
Dec 18 2025
The ‘E‘ of ESG: Postponement and simplification of the EU Deforestation Regulation
Introduction The European Parliament adopted a set of targeted amendments to simplify the EU Deforestation Regulation (the Regulation,...
Dec 18 2025
Austria’s New Electricity Act Balancing risk and competition: key changes for suppliers and producers (2/3)
Austria’s energy landscape is on the verge of a significant transformation: On December 11, 2025, the Austrian Parliament passed the...
Dec 16 2025
Doing Business in High-Risk Jurisdictions – Litigation Risks in France
France has emerged as a jurisdiction of relevance in the global trend toward holding companies accountable for human rights and...
Dec 16 2025
Austria’s New Electricity Act Navigating the grid of tomorrow: key changes for grid operators (1/3)
Austria’s energy landscape is on the verge of a significant transformation: On December 11, 2025, the Austrian federal government agreed...
Dec 16 2025
Effectively managing Caporalato-related supply chain risk: Senior management priorities to contain risk and liability
Part 2 of a two-part series on effectively managing Caporalato-related supply chain risk Italy’s fight against labour exploitation in...
Dec 12 2025
FCA consults on regulatory regime for ESG ratings providers
In late October, the UK Government published draft legislation to bring Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) ratings providers into...
Dec 12 2025
Omnibus nears the terminus: Simplification of the EU sustainability framework
Introduction  The European Union’s co-legislators have adopted a set of simplification measures to the Taxonomy Regulation, the Corporate...
Dec 9 2025
Effectively managing Caporalato-related supply chain risk: Rapid and legally sound crisis management
Part 1 of a two-part series on effectively managing Caporalato-related supply chain risk Earlier this year, we examined the growing...
Dec 9 2025
SFDR Simplified - European Commission proposes a revised Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation
On 20 November 2025, the European Commission unveiled its proposed revisions to the Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (SFDR), the...
Dec 1 2025
The ‘E‘ of ESG: Greenwashing under the spotlight – recent trends in the US
Similar to the recent developments and intensifying regulatory approaches we outlined in our blog posts covering greenwashing trends in...
Dec 1 2025
The ‘E‘ of ESG: Greenwashing under the spotlight – recent trends in the UK
As set out in our EU greenwashing trends blog post, many jurisdictions are stepping up scrutiny of greenwashing. The UK is no exception:...
Dec 1 2025
The ‘E‘ of ESG: Greenwashing under the spotlight – recent trends in the EU
Greenwashing is attracting growing scrutiny from courts and regulatory authorities in many jurisdictions, including the EU, UK, and US....
Related capabilities
Environment, social and governanceESG driven transactions and projectsEnergy transitionESG governance and strategyESG litigation and crisis managementSustainability regulation and reporting
Related capabilities
NAVIGATE TO
About usLocations and officesYour careerOur thinkingOur capabilitiesNews
CONNECT
Find a lawyerAlumniContact us
NEED HELP
Fraud and scamsComplaintsTerms and conditions
LEGAL
AccessibilityCookiesLegal noticesTransparency in supply chains statementResponsible procurementPrivacy

Select language:
Select language:
© 2026 Freshfields. Attorney Advertising: prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome