Companies’ legal exposure to greenwashing claims set to rise

Companies’ exposure to accusations of greenwashing is set to continue rising, and with it the risk of regulatory action, civil claims and reputational damage, lawyers told The Business Times.

Underpinning that trend are the growing demand for more environmentally friendly offerings from corporates, escalating competition for green financing and deepening scrutiny from stakeholders and regulators.

Complicating how companies manage this growing threat is the current lack of a unified definition of what constitutes greenwashing, still-developing rules and laws, and the growing consensus that greenwashing does not need to be intentional to be deemed as such.