Greenwashing: Corporate Practices Under Scrutiny – Part 1

Greenwashing is a practice that can include overstating a company's environmental record, misrepresenting the sustainability of its corporate practices or claiming a product as environmentally friendly without any verifiable evidence. With a growing focus from consumers and regulators on sustainability and on Environmental Social and Governance issues ('ESG'), claims arising from the environmental impact of corporate practices are coming under increasing scrutiny.

In this first article of a two-part series, we will look at recent caselaw which considers whether alleged greenwashing practices amount to a breach of consumer legalisation. We will also discuss an uptake in regulatory intervention against companies making unverified or misleading ESG related claims. In our second article, we will consider what steps the EU is taking to combat the practice of greenwashing.