In agriculture, sustainability is not a preference–it is a sign of vitality. Food manufacturers, farmers, and land investors across the globe who understand that have already begun to reap the benefits.
As in other industries that have prioritized environmental social governance, companies that ethically source the resources to develop and produce crops and livestock see substantial financial benefits and boost their long-term productivity and longevity. For reasons that differ across continents, consumers and regulators alike have placed enormous value on sustainable farming and land maintenance, and companies and investors that fail to meet the standards they set are being excluded in the market.
Responsible farming involves a litany of issues, all of which come with legal and financial hurdles that differ country to country and region to region. Our team of lawyers assists clients in navigating regulations around pesticide usage, sourcing clean water, ethical labor practices, environmental protection, and effects on wildlife, among countless others.
Standards also differ among private clients and trade groups. We serve as counsel in discussions and disputes across the supply chain, from farmers themselves to distributors, to the companies that deliver the product to the consumer. With lawyers around the globe who are intimately familiar with the standards of their region, our team is uniquely positioned to help guide clients looking to create policies and audit procedures across a variety of sustainability metrics.
More than any other time, businesses, investors, and consumers alike have the responsibility to promote, sponsor, and consume ethically sourced and sustainable agriculture. Our team has spent years helping clients meet that responsibility and build value while doing so. We can help to ensure that you will, too.
Since returning to office in January 2025, President Trump has made broad assertions of executive authority, including the power to fire independent agency heads at will. For almost a century, these officials have been protected by law from such “without cause” removals, enjoying insulation from direct presidential control. That status quo—rooted in the Supreme Court’s 1935 decision in Humphrey’s Executor v. United States—is on the verge of transformation.
This edition of The Essentials coincides with the close of California’s 2025 legislative session and summarizes the most significant employment-related bills enacted this year. We have highlighted key provisions of the new laws taking effect in 2026 and one related to the use of artificial intelligence that took effect in October 2025.
The One Big Beautiful Bill Act makes major changes to the Internal Revenue Code’s clean energy tax provisions, particularly to the provisions that were extended, expanded, and established as part of the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act.
Congress created a new framework around payment stablecoins but has done more than regulate a digital asset class—it has quietly set in motion a potential transformation of the regulation of core payment systems.
We welcome your email, but please understand that if you are not already a client of K&L Gates LLP, we cannot represent you until we confirm that doing so would not create a conflict of interest and is otherwise consistent with the policies of our firm. Accordingly, please do not include any confidential information until we verify that the firm is in a position to represent you and our engagement is confirmed in a letter. Prior to that time, there is no assurance that information you send us will be maintained as confidential. Thank you for your consideration.
