Generation Z: Our Most Sustainable Legal Professionals Yet- by Maddison Daniels.

As legal professionals, we are responsible for ensuring that our actions do not hinder the ability of future generations to effectively practice law. This responsibility has rightly entered the agendas of lawyers in all aspects of the profession, including those at the very beginning of their legal career.

Across Law Schools, including at the University of Leicester, resources that were previously accessible in printed form, were phased out in favour of their digital alternative. An increased reliance on databases and online resources, such as WestLaw, have prepared students for the changing nature of the industry in which they aspire to enter. Experienced legal professionals, on the other hand, might not have been able to obtain such an insight during their studies, and instead, will have been forced to adapt to radical change.

For example, the centre of International Dispute Resolution in London has benefitted from the implementation of the E-Filing system, and the concept of the E-Court has been described as a ‘vision of the future’ by Deputy District Judge, Peter Causton. Whilst it might be argued that these diversions from traditional methods are merely a result of technological change, they have also served to transform environmentally oppressive processes into more sustainable ones: by reducing waste and their use of paper. Therefore, it is clear that reliance on technology in the legal profession has contributed to improvement in the efficiency and sustainability of its processes.

However, a society and legal education largely dominated by technology has also had the effect of altering the demographic of current and future generations of lawyer. The Law Society recognised in their LawTech Adoption Report (2019) that those currently entering the workforce are that of the ‘digital native’ where technology is ‘engrained’ into every aspect of their lives. It is arguable that this encompasses influencing or enforcing opinions, particularly where there is a political or policy objective. Activism on the issues of climate change and the environment on social media has been conducive to the creation of a generation of sustainability-conscious lawyers now entering a profession where sustainability itself has been placed at the forefront of the agenda.

Whilst the agenda itself will be explored in future posts, owing to our legal education, reliance on technology and increased awareness of the importance of sustainability, lawyers in our generation will be better equipped to meet its objectives.

The sustainability mindset and its impact on the legal sector - By Harrison Jowett

The sustainability mindset and its impact on the legal sector Harrison Jowett, University of Leicester

The rise in sustainable, environmentally conscious, and zero-waste firms[1] represents a significant trend in consumer values that has been building since the initial stages of recycling and the conception of corporate responsibility. However, as this growing attitude to green consumerism seeps from retail and into almost every sector of the economy, law firms will be forced to amend their practice – and advice, accordingly.

Even in my lifetime, the attitude to waste has changed significantly. Packaging now displays directions on how it can be recycled and there has been a rise in low-packaging campaigns – Kenco’s advert where customers were shown balancing coffee granules in-hand springs immediately to mind.[2] Ostensibly, this seems to encourage consumers to act in a more responsible manner, and this is a large motivation. But the sustainability mindset also has vast business benefits.[3] If consumers are more aware of their waste, for example, then they are surely likely to shop more conscientiously. This is a trend that has been picked up by other firms[4] and investment in the production of low-waste packaging, production, retail and transport methods has grown hugely.[5] Even in the service sector, paperless offices (despite their questionable real impact on the environment) have grown in popularity in the last decade.

For lawyers, this is a fertile ground for business opportunities across almost every sector. For existing clients there will likely be a rise in re-negotiation of contracts in the supply chain as they shift to more sustainable production methods. Alternatively, a rise in restructuring, mergers and acquisitions will likely come to fruition, albeit in a post-Covid environment,[6] as firms set themselves up for the new normal and collaborate with new image-conscious partners. This applies to firms like BP who are currently seeking to re-frame their entire business model for a greener initiative.[7]

There will also be scope to acquire new clients. As sustainable firms grow, there will be an increased demand for employment contracts and commercial property as well as structured finance for investment and negotiating supply-chain contracts. Moreover, the firms that cannot survive will also need legal support as they terminate employees and sell their assets. In short, it will cause a spike in business operations which law firms can undoubtedly capitalise upon.

However, law firms must be vigilant not to be out-run by their clients. Sustainable clients are increasingly conscious of their associations and will likely avoid firms such as Slaughter and May because of their associations with the oil and gas industry.[8] This will damage the reputations of firms quicker than it will their revenues; but the long-term development of this trend suggests that firms who act now will likely benefit from it in the future. This solidifies the focus on agility in the current legal market as firms compete in this ‘decade of disruption’. In addition, it is not only firms output that must reflect the sustainability mindset – but also their advice. The ability to tailor legal support to the business needs of clients is arguably the most desirable legal skill.[9] Firms who recognise a changing commercial landscape and give current, valuable advice will benefit from clients who value ethics more in line with profits.

Therefore, it is clear that the structure of industry is changing. This environmental revolution, like the technological landslide of the last decade, will have deep and lasting effects on every area of business and will have resulting effects on a legal industry that must be prepared.

[1] Cotton, B., 25 sustainable UK companies that are out to save the planet (Business Leader, 2019) <https://www.businessleader.co.uk/25-sustainable-uk-companies-that-are-out-to-save-the-planet/66208/> accessed 06/2020 [2] Masters, K., Kenco eco refill ad (YouTube, 2013) <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2_kgd5Z9rgw> accessed 06/2020 [3] Young, K., The Rise of Green Consumerism: What do Brands Need to Know? (GlobalWebIndex, 2020) <https://blog.globalwebindex.com/chart-of-the-week/green-consumerism/> accessed 06/2020 [4] Bennett, M., Why more than half of UK businesses are planning to increase spend on sustainability, (Telegraph, 2020) <https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/ready-and-enabled/sustainability/increasing-spend/> accessed 06/2019 [5] Flood, C., Europeans make record investments in sustainable funds (FT, 2020) https://www.ft.com/content/c2952357-c28b-4662-a393-c6586640404f> accessed 06/2020 [6] Vince, G., After the Covid-19 crisis, will we get a greener world? (Guardian, 2020) <https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/may/17/after-the-covid-19-crisis-will-we-get-a-greener-world> accessed 06/2020; Popov, J., The green road to post-crisis recovery (FT, 2020) <https://www.ft.com/content/16d84fbc-74fe-11ea-90ce-5fb6c07a27f2> access 06/2020 [7] Anon, Even the oil giants now foresee the end of the gasoline age (Guardian, 2020) <https://www.theguardian.com/business/2020/jun/21/even-oil-giants-now-foresee-end-of-gasoline-age-shell-bp-profitability-pandemic> accessed 06/2020 [8] Mawardi, A., Extinction rebellion: what went down at the protest outside Slaughter and May (Legal Cheek, 2020), <https://www.legalcheek.com/2020/02/extinction-rebellion-what-went-down-at-the-protest-outside-slaughter-and-may/> accessed 06/2020 [9] Adaramola, O., Why is commercial awareness very important in the legal sector (TSL, 2020), <https://thestudentlawyer.com/2020/03/16/why-is-commercial-awareness-very-important-in-the-legal-sector/> accessed 06/2020

Are international environmental agreements effective in helping the law to adapt?

There are many agreements where UN countries have met and decided upon a set of targets and rules which they often agree on and sign to say that they will adhere to the agreements. Perhaps two of the most famous examples are the ‘Kyoto Protocol’ (1992) and the ‘Paris Agreement’ (Paris climate conference (COP21) in December 2015).

There are several hundred international environmental agreements, however, most of them only include a limited number of countries. Also, they are only binding for the countries that have ratified them to make them official law.

The Kyoto Protocol 1997

The Kyoto Protocol is “an international agreement linked to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, which commits its parties by setting internationally binding emission reduction targets.”(United Nations ‘Climate Change’ website, ‘Kyoto Protocol’ page, (2008) ( http://unfccc.int/kyoto_protocol/items/2830.php ) The United Nations Climate Change website explains that “under the Protocol, countries must meet their targets primarily through national measures”. This is good because it means that all signed up countries are working together towards a common goal of a more sustainable future but it can still be done in a way which is flexible to the different needs and development rates of individual countries as some, most likely less economically developed countries may have heavier industry in some areas, for example. However, the Protocol also “offers them an additional means to meet their targets by way of three market-based mechanisms: international emission trading, clean development an joint implementation.” This is positive because it allows for flexibility still whilst offering help to countries to make sure that they can actually reach their targets and succeed in making their nations more sustainable. Like the convention, the Protocol is “designed to assist countries in adapting to the adverse effects of climate change. It facilitates the development and deployment of technologies that can help increase resilience to the impacts of climate change." There is also an “adaptation fund” to make sure that the targets and mechanisms put in place can be afforded fully by poorer nations. This implies it is a truly global effort to help legal systems adapt sufficiently to global sustainability issues. Working collaboratively on this scale is good because all the signed-up nations can work together to help combat global climate change whilst still having the flexibility to make sure it works for their people.

Has the Kyoto Protocol been successful as a key model of whether international environmental agreements are effective in helping the law to adapt sufficiently to growing sustainability issues across the globe?

1. “The headline results tell us that between 1990 and 2012 the original Kyoto Protocol parties reduced their CO2 emissions by 12.5%, which is well beyond the 2012 target of 4.7% (CO2 only, rather than greenhouse gases, and including Canada). The Kyoto Protocol was therefore a huge success.”(‘The Kyoto Protocol: Climate Change Success or Global Warming Failure?’,‘Circular Ecology’ (4/2/2015), Blog by Dr Craig Jones.(http://www.circularecology.com/news/the-kyoto-protocol-climate-change-success-or-global-warming-failure). This is what the main figures suggest and make the protocol out to be a huge success. However, this “revelation that would stabilise greenhouse gas concentrations in the climate to prevent dangerous anthropogenic interference with the climate system”was, arguably, not such a huge success even though C02 emissions were still reduced as “there are more successes than failures” (‘Has the Kyoto protocol made any difference to carbon emissions?’ , ‘The Guardian’Newspaper Online (Duncan Clarke 2012)) when looking at “how countries have performed against their targets”.

The Graph Below is from the ‘The Guardian’ Newspaper Online (Duncan Clarke 2012) and shows “the gap between each nation's percentage target and its actual percentage change between 1990 and 2010”. The original data was sourced from the United Nations Climate Change Date base page. (United Nations Climate Change Date base page, (http://unfccc.int/ghg_data/kp_data_unfccc/base_year_data/items/4354.php)

This graph demonstrates how successful the Protocol seems however, “coming to light now is that this was also a political masterstroke that would ensure the success of the Kyoto Protocol before it had even begun.” (‘The Kyoto Protocol: Climate Change Success or Global Warming Failure?’,‘Circular Ecology’ (4/2/2015), Blog by Dr Craig Jones.) It is clear that the emissions came down very quickly after 1990. An interesting explanation for this is that “there was a rapid decline in heavy manufacturing industries across Russia and the newly independent states” after the fall of the Soviet Union. Dr Craig Jones writing for the ‘Circular Ecology’ blog writes that “this collapse was particularly significant in Russia and Ukraine, the two largest energy consumers in this group" which is a “key reason for the decline in energy consumption of the Kyoto Protocol parties”. The independence of the Republics of the Soviet Union effectively split the figures up and reduced the effects of the original state’s C02 emissions dramatically.

This can be shown in this graphic by Dr Craig Jones for ‘Circular Ecology’:

‘Circular Ecology’ (Dr Craig Jones, 2015) (http://www.circularecology.com/news/the-kyoto-protocol-climate-change-success-or-global-warming-failure)

It seems that the Kyoto Protocol, as a key model of whether international environmental agreements are effective in helping the law to adapt sufficiently to growing sustainability issues, has been partially successful as it has demonstrated a decline in emissions and it has acted as an international catalyst for the development of new environmental laws in many counties which ratified the Protocol. However, it is clear that there were some clever political movements to try to make it appear more of a success on paper than in perhaps was in terms of figures. But, it still achieved well in adapting the law to growing environmental issues so it is still relevant and useful for today.