Explore key ASIC cases against Mercer, Vanguard, and LGSS over greenwashing, with record penalties for misleading environmental claims.
Presenters
Samuel Allam, Special Counsel, Baker Mackenzie
Sam is a Special Counsel in our Environment and Climate Change practice, based in Sydney. He is known for providing incisive advice to manage environment and climate change issues, especially risks and opportunities most acute to the renewable energy and digital economy transitions. This positions clients to meet regulatory, governance, and shareholder expectations from a whole-of-environment and ESG perspective. Sam has been operating in this field for more than 10 years, in private practice and in-house. This includes working inside one of Australia’s biggest renewable energy companies where he led the Environment Team and reported to the GC and COO. Before joining Baker McKenzie three years ago, Sam was a Senior Associate at a top tier law firm in Sydney. His regular column – the "Whole of Environment Report" – is published by The Fifth Estate (a leading Australian newspaper on the sustainable environment). The column targets the C-suite and leaders in government. It draws on Sam’s day-to-day work and through its conversational style offers rare clarity on subjects like emissions reduction targets, mandatory climate reporting, corporate governance, greenwashing, the voluntary carbon (ACCUs) market, Australia’s new nature repair market, climate change litigation, nuclear energy and offshore wind. Sam is a guest lecturer on environment law, renewable energy, sustainability and climate change at the University of Melbourne Law School.
Dr Laura Schuijers, Barrister, Victorian Bar
Laura is a barrister at the Victorian Bar with particular expertise in climate change and other environmental issues. She practices across all areas of law. Since coming to the bar, Laura has been briefed in matters involving misleading conduct relating to climate and environmental credentials, judicial review of project approval decisions, climate change attribution, adaptation planning, and conservation, including under the EPBC Act and state legislation. Laura read with Katherine Brazenor and her senior mentors are Juliet Forsyth SC and Emrys Nekvapil SC. Laura is also a lecturer at Sydney Law School. She teaches the subject Environmental and Climate Science in Court, and tutors Land Law. Laura publishes in leading academic journals and supervises Honours and PhD students on topics relating to climate change litigation. Before coming to the bar, Laura practised as a solicitor in planning and environmental law at DLA Piper, and served as the Foote postdoctoral fellow in Climate Solutions at the Melbourne Sustainable Society Institute, where she advised government and industry as well as the former US VP Al Gore, chairman of the Climate Reality Project. Laura holds a Bachelor of Science and Bachelor of Laws (Hons) from the University of Melbourne (Planning and Environmental Law Prize); a Master of Environment (First Class Hons, Dean’s Prize); and a PhD in environmental law (APA Award; Endeavour Australia Award). She has attended Columbia Law School’s Sabin Center for Climate Law as a visiting scholar and Oxford University’s Law Faculty as a visiting academic. Laura is a member of the IUCN World Commission on Environmental Law.
