We spoke to ESG professionals at two law firms to see how they're handling the increasing demand from clients and investors to address these concerns.

In late April, about one-quarter of European investment funds classified themselves as “sustainable” as investors’ demand for adherence to environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) concerns soars. Although demand for ESG-compliant investment products is surging, confusion over what it means in practice has spurred European policymakers to define standards and terms for transparency.

The spillover effect of this demand is impacting law firms too. According to Thomson Reuters data, 42% of its Large Law clients have ESG practices, including Freshfields and Herbert Smith Freehills (HSF). We sat down with leaders of these two firms’ ESG practices to discuss the current realities of advising clients in an emerging area of law that remains complex.

Timothy A. Wilkins, Freshfields’ global partner for client sustainability, and Oliver Dudok van Heel, who also manages the firm’s strategy to reduce the firm’s environmental footprint, work together to advise the firm’s clients on ESG issues.

HSF also works multilaterally, and Silke Goldberg, partner and chair of the firm’s global ESG practice advises clients on clean energy projects and on issues pertaining to projects around carbon credits, trading, permit and capture, as well as sustainability disclosures and development of a sustainability strategy. HSF’s pillars of its ESG practice are around “climate change, business and human rights, responsible investment, green/sustainable finance, and good governance,” says Goldberg, who is also one of multiple leaders working internally on ESG.

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