The Implications Butler-Sloss Has For Trustees' Investment Policies

People seem split on whether the decision of Mr. Justice Michael Green in the Butler-Sloss case should be restricted to its charitable context, or whether it has wider implications for trustees deciding on ethical investments. These decisions are important considerations to trustees such as Ocorian, as we put the best interests of our clients first. Mindful that future generations often favour environmentally sound investment, this article by Ocorian's Paul Buckle considers the impact of the decision.

That the case has charitable significance is in no doubt; the trustees of two charities sought the court's approval under category 2 of the familiar Public Trustee v Cooper jurisdiction of their decision to introduce two new investment policies. What made that decision momentous, and hence within Cooper Category 2, was that the policies both excluded investment in over half of publicly traded companies and many funds because they did not meet the ESG criteria by which