A vital yet surprisingly overlooked aspect of corporate sustainability is asset redeployability. Redeployable assets are those that can be used in several ways. Assets with high redeployability promote sustainability because they can be re-assigned for various purposes as circumstances change, reducing the need to create new assets and thereby conserving natural resources. This is akin to
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Cadwalader Discusses New SEC Rule 10b5-1 Trading Plan Rules
On December 14, 2022, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) unanimously adopted final rules adding new conditions applicable to Rule 10b5-1 trading plans and requiring disclosure of the adoption, modification or termination of Rule 10b5-1 trading plans by directors and officers of public companies. In addition, the new rules require disclosure of option grant…
How Weakening the Fiduciary Duty of Loyalty Affects Corporate Culture
Corporate culture binds employees together and directs their collective behavior at work. It also has an important impact on the success of organizations. Studying the determinants of corporate culture has been difficult, however, because of its unobservable nature. In a recent working paper, we investigate how the fiduciary duty of loyalty affects corporate culture in…
Davis Polk Discusses SEC Package of Equity Market Structure Proposals
The SEC recently proposed a set of sweeping equity market structure reforms across four rule proposals that would make highly significant changes to how national market system (NMS) stock orders are priced, executed and reported. The proposals include:
- a new requirement for certain retail orders to be subject to order-by-order competition, rather than being routed
…
Sabin Center Releases Its Summer/Fall 2022 Semi-annual Report
The Sabin Center for Climate Change Law posted its Summer/Fall 2022 Semi-Annual Report, which includes a summary of the Center’s key activities between June and December 2022.
It is available for download here.
Below are some highlights from the report:
- Michael Gerrard received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the New York Law Journal
…
Sullivan & Cromwell Discusses ESG Considerations for Financial Institutions in 2023
As U.S. financial institutions assess their ESG risks, opportunities, policies and procedures for 2023, key considerations include the numerous significant ESG developments in 2022—in particular, recent proposals and initiatives announced by financial regulators with respect to climate-related risk management and disclosures—and overarching regulatory, political, investor and litigation trends. This memorandum summarizes several ESG considerations that…
Rethinking Cautions Accompanying Investment Predictions
We are constantly bombarded with warnings about dangers to our health or wellbeing. Sometimes, however, the warnings might facilitate the danger. In a new article, I show how the cautionary statements that commonly accompany predictions of corporate performance fall into this camp.
The judicially created “bespeaks caution doctrine”[1] and a highly controversial provision in…
A Pressing Topic for the Corporate Social Voice
The frightening deficiencies in U.S. public health preparedness are an appropriate, and pressing, topic to be addressed by the recently dormant corporate social voice.
One of the central tenets of the corporate social responsibility movement is a broader perspective on corporate purpose, focusing on the interests of all organizational stakeholders – including shareholders, employees, communities,…
Chief of DOJ’s Criminal Division Announces Revisions to Corporate Enforcement Policy
Professor O’Sullivan, thank you for that kind introduction. It’s a pleasure to be here with you all today [January 17] at Georgetown. Not only am I an alum of the Law Center, I’m an alum of this building, Gewirz Residence Hall.
Much has changed since I was a student here. There was no International Law…
Why Passive Investors Care About Audit Quality
In recent decades, the rise of index funds (or passive investors), has caused heated debates over the efficacy of their stewardship role in corporate governance. Passive owners cannot influence the governance of a firm by selling its stock because the index composition determines whether the stock is in the fund. This may increase passive investors’s…