In the era of increased environmental awareness, the spotlight on green claims has never been more intense. As consumers are concerned about global heating and ecological sustainability, they are scrutinizing products like never before, seeking eco-friendly options that align with their values. In response, businesses have responded to this concern and consumers’ purchase interest, with brand-owners increasingly highlighting the benign or even beneficial effects their products and services have on the environment fostering a surge in green marketing initiatives. Yet, amidst this push for sustainability, the risk of being accused of greenwashing is omnipresent. As environmental characteristics of products and services are highly technical and the understanding of the various concepts involved is continuously changing, en­vir­on­ment­al/sus­tain­ab­il­ity claims raise a significant risk of confusing and misleading consumers. Many companies have fallen foul of advertising standards in this area recently. Given the high sensitivity of environmental claims and the reputational damage that can result from allegations of greenwashing, it is particularly important to make sure environmental claims are compliant. By ensuring truthful, accurate and unambiguous information is always given to the consumers, companies can avoid the risks and build a reputation for authenticity in their sustainability advertising and communications. CMS guides companies through the maze of regulations and case law and advise on the steps a company can take to ensure their advertising is not only compliant but also authentic and impactful. The priority questions we address are: Which green claims are likely to raise litigation or regulatory enforcement risks?What can businesses do to mitigate these risks?What are the likely claims/en­force­ment that could arise?Who is likely to make a claim?What are the risks in the event of a violation or a complaint? What future regulatory measures are expected and what companies have to do now to be prepared? We offer various solutions to help you be compliant and avoid accusations of greenwashing: Sustainability claim checks including regulatory risk matrix as well as litigation: evaluating the planned claims and mapping their risk as well as developing compliant marketing strategies and claims custom-tailored to your business's unique pro­file;Sus­tain­ab­il­ity-re­lated litigation: providing comprehensive support in legal disputes in the area of advertising with environmental claims;Training sessions: to empower your legal, compliance and sustainability as well as advertising teams with in-depth knowledge of sustainability risks and mitigation strategies; andBoard packs: to equip your directors/board members with actionable insights into greenwashing risks, ensuring they steer the company toward sustainable strategies with confidence and integrity.  For an initial conversation on how we can support you on greenwashing risk, please reach out to the lawyers listed on this page or to your usual CMS contact.

November 2023

The media sector is known to be highly competitive, with that competition driving innovation. Older media businesses have had to grapple with disruptive new entrants. And those new entrants are constantly working to deliver better and more engaging content and user experiences to maintain their advantage. Digitisation has changed how media companies interact with their audience in ways we could not have imagined just a few years ago, but this comes with risk. This report is a deep dive into the data first produced for the report Technology Transformation: Managing Risks in a Changing Landscape. This saw over 500 corporate counsel and risk managers surveyed from multiple industries across the world. Here we look in detail at the 75 respondents from the media sector, and their perspectives on the risks associated with busi­ness-crit­ic­al technologies, including emerging technologies. What did we find? Media is a dynamic sector and can be an early adopter of many novel technologies as companies push for competitive advantages to create and satisfy customer demand. As we look to the future, the sector does seem underprepared in some areas, which is a potential cause for concern. Download the Technology Transformation media sector report now to read aboutThe principal drivers in the adoption of busi­ness-crit­ic­al technology in the media sectorConfidence in managing tech-related risks among senior media executivesFuture threats from new technologies like AI and blockchainWhich plans and processes media companies are putting in place to protect tech in­fra­struc­ture­Cul­tur­al barriers to managing tech risks in the media sectorPreferred approaches to dispute resolution in the media sector

Digitalisation has transformed how consumer products are manufactured, distributed and sold. The push to maintain a competitive advantage, drives increased investment in new technologies. This investment may reduce operational cost and ease the retention of legacy systems, but what challenges arise and how do businesses approach the changing risk profile?This report is a deep dive into data first produced for the re­port Tech­no­logy Transformation: Managing Risks in a Changing Landscape. In the original report we surveyed over 500 corporate counsel and risk managers from multiple industries across the world. Here, we look in detail at the 75 respondents surveyed in the consumer and retail sector, and their perspectives on the risks associated with busi­ness-crit­ic­al technologies, including emerging technologies. Our survey shows that businesses across the sector, whether retailers or manufacturers, have the same concerns but the influences on the adoption of technology, the resulting risks, and the approaches taken to mitigate or resolve those risks vary depending on whether or not the business involves a direct sales relationship with the consumer. Download the consumer and retail sector report now to read about: Drivers of technology adoption in the consumer and retail sectorNew risks emerging and traditional barriers to risk man­age­ment­Cur­rent technology risks in the consumer and retail sectorFuture risks and measures to deal with themPreferred approaches to technology dispute resolution for the consumer and retail sector

1. How is Bolar implemented? The Bolar provision of Article 10 of EU Directive 2004/27 is implemented by Article 6bis §1 of the Medicinal Products Act of 25 March 1964, the last paragraph of which reads:“Per­form­ing...

Changing tech, changing risks

General 1. Has the Directive (EU) 2016/943 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 8 June 2016 on the protection of undisclosed know-how and business information (trade secrets) against their...