The worldwide focus on carbon dioxide and greenhouse gases (GHG) is intensifying, and changes to their regulations and policies at nearly every level of government and business have the potential to broadly impact our lives and livelihoods. Our global, cross-practice team of lawyers has decades of experience in energy transition and renewables, carbon capture, storage and transportation, carbon trading, and commodity and derivatives regulation, and regularly works with entities engaged in the carbon market.
Whether viewed through the lens of decarbonization or carbon as a commodity asset, we see increasing efforts to manage and regulate carbon. Global efforts are underway to:
Transition the energy system and amplify the use of renewable energy.
Develop and deliver alternative no- and low-carbon fuels.
Regulate the emissions of GHG from industrial activities.
Establish markets where carbon credits are sold on a voluntary or mandatory basis.
Capture, transport, and sequester carbon dioxide in nature-based systems, in geological structures, or in commercial products.
Commoditize the value of sequestered carbon in transactable credits.
Standardize and verify the sequestration of carbon dioxide.
Develop liquid derivatives markets to allow for efficient hedging and exposure to voluntary carbon markets
We address many of these leading issues in our Carbon Quarterly publication.
Unlike other commodities, the commercial, regulatory, and policy frameworks for managing, regulating, and transacting carbon are still evolving. Through our fully integrated, global platform, we work seamlessly across practices and jurisdictions to provide tailored legal solutions in insurance coverage, intellectual property, tax, policy advocacy, environmental, corporate, commercial, regulatory enforcement, and dispute matters to help our clients harness opportunities, minimize risk, and achieve their ultimate goals and objectives.
On 22 December 2020, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) adopted amendments (the final rule) to Rule 206(4)-1 under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 (the Advisers Act) to modernize the regulation of investment adviser advertising and solicitation practices.
In late May 2025, the Consumer Protection Cooperation Network and the European Commission concluded a joint investigation into online marketplace and e-retailer SHEIN.
Starting on 30 June 2024, with the application of the first of two introduction phases of the Regulation on Markets in Crypto-assets across all member states of the European Union, the EU has introduced for the first time a harmonized regulatory framework as well as accompanying passporting rights for service providers of the crypto-asset market, affecting both traditional institutions of the financial sector and new players emerging in the crypto-ecosystem.
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