Law Society Unveils Climate Resolution

In October the Law Society launched its climate change resolution, encouraging members of the legal profession to lead the race to net-zero.  I. Stephanie Boyce, president of the Law Society, said law firms “need to prepare for how the consequences of the climate crisis will affect them and contribute to the global drive to transition to net-zero.  This includes identifying climate change-related risks and greener courses of action, as well as reducing the greenhouse gases associated with running any business”.

The resolution sets out key elements that the Society will use to help solicitors and law firms reduce their climate impact while supporting the industry in going beyond the Paris Agreement’s target of a 2°C in global warming.

By adopting science-led targets, the Law Society intends to develop plans which will be consistent with achieving a restriction of warming of 1.5°C.  The Society will support solicitors providing information and guidance that will help practices be fully-informed on mitigative actions.

Educational tools and resources will be developed to help solicitors modify their daily activities in order to reduce the climate-impact of individual practices; when large numbers of solicitors and firms adopt environmentally-considerate methods the overall effect will be significant.

Although the Society may well be able to influence the profession, it will also be working with legislative, regulatory, and policy-making reform to ensure that any future developments will be impactful and manageable in terms of practice of law, and access to the rule of law.

The Climate Change Resolution also urges organisations that work with the legal profession to operate in a way that will contribute to the reduction of global warming factors by following steps similar to those proposed to the law profession.  Law firms will be encouraged to support training and development programmes that will allow solicitors to transition into disciplines that are related to climate change, such working within green energy, green real estate, and sustainable finance.

The full text of the Law Society’s Climate Change Resolution is available here.

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