Our responsible business

Our sustainable operations

As a global law firm, we recognize the importance of a healthy environment and are working to improve our sustainable management operations.

Our Responsible Business Subcommittee, which is part of our Global Citizenship Committee, leads on ESG and sustainability efforts across our operations. It includes a core team of our General Counsels, partners, associates and Business Services professionals from different locations and business functions. In 2022, we appointed a Global Environmental Sustainability Manager to oversee sustainability practices across the Firm.

Leveraging the knowledge of our Environment & Climate Change Practice, ESG and Sustainability practice and Responsible Business Subcommittee, we share best practices across our global network that reduce the environmental footprint of our operations, our employees and our suppliers.

Read our 2023 Environmental Sustainability Report.

Our Environmental Sustainability Policy

47%

of our energy usage is renewable energy

Our Environmental Sustainability Policy sets out the Firm’s high-level goals for implementing sustainable operations. The following principles guide our operations to ensure we reduce our environmental impacts:

  • Comply with all regulatory requirements and voluntary codes of practice applicable to each office
  • Reduce pollution from our activities and implement sustainable waste management practices to minimize the quantity of waste we produce and maximize the amount of waste we recycle
  • Identify key resources such as water, paper and energy used by each office, and implement measures to ensure that we use those resources efficiently
  • Manage our carbon emissions by continuing to improve the energy efficiency of our premises and effectively measuring the environmental impacts of our business travel

We work with our suppliers and employees to improve performance by promoting awareness of sustainability issues and environmental management best practices.

Firm actions to reduce our environmental impact

  • In 2023, we completed our sixth carbon emission assessment in collaboration with Greenstone. Key findings from the 2022 emissions data in comparison to before the pandemic include:
    • 23 percent reduction in scope 1 emissions
    • 29 percent reduction in scope 2 market-based emissions and 9 percent reduction in scope 2 location-based emissions
    • 63 percent reduction in scope 3 emissions from waste and 24 percent reduction in scope 3 emissions from travel 
  • Our Environmental Management System sets out core practices and formalizes plans in each office to continue to reduce our environmental footprint
  • Our Global Office Design Guidelines include sustainability principles to promote green practices in all aspects of office design
  • Our Sustainable Operations Guidelines provide each office with a practical guide to running our office operations in line with best practices for sustainability
  • We have adopted many practices to reduce single-use plastics
  • Our annual Global Green Campaign, established in 2013, informs our people about important environmental issues, steps the Firm is taking, and ways we can all play a part in finding solutions

For more detail about our activities, please contact Sarah Hickey, Global Environmental Sustainability Manager.

 

 

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