ESG & Impact

Corporate Solutions

Kirkland counsels public and private companies across a wide range of industries on all aspects of ESG in order to comply with regulation, mitigate risk, enhance relationships with key stakeholders and generate long-term value.

Capabilities include:

• ESG goals and commitments
• Reporting frameworks and disclosures (e.g., TCFD, CDP, ISSB S1, GRI)
• Regulatory compliance and advocacy (e.g., SEC Climate Rule, California Climate Laws, Modern Slavery Laws, CSRD, UK CFD)
• Coalitions and investor engagement (e.g., CA100+, Nature Action 100, GFANZ, Race to Zero)
• ESG-related shareholder proposals and activism defense
• Governance and oversight
• M&A due diligence
• Contract negotiations
• Financing (including sustainable and sustainability-linked bonds/loans)
• Government incentives
• Risk mitigation and crisis response
• Sale and IPO preparation

Investment Funds Solutions

Kirkland serves as ESG counsel to a range of fund sponsors, from middle market to some of the most sophisticated, publicly listed firms. We cover the entire fund life-cycle, from fund strategy and fundraising, to integration in acquisitions, ownership and exit. Our experience ranges across diverse asset classes, including private equity, impact, infrastructure, real estate, credit, venture and hedge strategies. At each stage, we keep an eye on the firm-level commitments and program, and leverage our experience and market intelligence to help our clients create value and mitigate risk for their investors.

Capabilities include:

• ESG commitments and industry frameworks advice
• Investment strategy
• Conflicts considerations
• Investor negotiations and relations
• Regulatory compliance and advocacy (e.g., SEC Rules, California Climate and VC Diversity Reporting Laws, Modern Slavery Laws, CSRD, SFDR, UK SDR and CFD)
• Governance and oversight
• Voluntary and LP reporting (e.g., PRI, GRESB, TCFD)
• M&A due diligence
• Contract negotiations
• Portfolio monitoring, engagement and training
• Portfolio & fund-level financing (including sustainable and sustainability-linked loans)
• Sale and IPO preparation

Impact Investing

Kirkland’s ESG & Impact Practice Group has advised on tens of billions of dollars’ worth of investments in sustainability-aligned opportunities, such as energy transition and climate solutions, as well as critical social needs, such as education and healthcare. The team navigates ever-changing regulatory regimes, industry frameworks and stakeholder demands at the same time that it develops first-of-their-kind legal tools to support clients at the cutting edge of impact investing.

Capabilities include:

• Impact strategy and frameworks / principles (e.g., SDGs, OPIM)
• Impact measurement and management systems (e.g., GIIN IRIS+)
• Impact-linked carry and other incentives
• Governance and oversight
• Regulatory compliance (e.g., SFDR, Taxonomy)
• Voluntary and LP reporting
• M&A due diligence
• Contract negotiations
• Portfolio monitoring, engagement and training
• Portfolio and fund-level financing (including sustainable and sustainability-linked loans)
• Sale and IPO preparation
• Alternative corporate forms and certifications (e.g., Public Benefit Corporations, B Corp Certification)

Litigation & Enforcement

Kirkland’s ESG & Impact Practice Group prides itself on providing practical advice to clients on how to reduce ESG-related litigation and enforcement exposure. When litigation and enforcement matters do arise, our team partners with Kirkland’s renowned Litigation and Government, Regulatory & Internal Investigations practice groups to resolve those matters efficiently and effectively.

Capabilities include:

• ESG-related securities litigation (e.g., shareholder derivative suits)
• ESG-related examinations and audit preparedness
• ESG-related contractual disputes
• Antitrust and competition claims related to ESG industry coalitions and commitments
• Greenwashing and other false advertising / consumer protection claims
• “Anti-ESG” inquiries, subpoenas and investigations / demands by state legislative and federal congressional bodies and state attorney generals and comptrollers
• Internal investigations and audits (e.g., human rights, anti-bribery and anti-corruption, racial and pay equity)
• Fiduciary duty claims
• Discrimination claims and lawsuits
• Climate change litigation

Climate Change

Kirkland’s ESG & Impact Practice Group leverages the Firm’s multidisciplinary strengths, including its highly-ranked infrastructure finance and M&A, environmental, and energy regulatory practices, to provide comprehensive counseling to clients on climate change and the corresponding market, regulatory, and litigation risks and opportunities. We partner with sponsors, investors, lenders, and companies to address the risks and opportunities of climate change, the net-zero transition and related socioeconomic transformations.


Capabilities include:

• Climate commitments and related standards (e.g., SBTi)
• Transition planning
• Investment strategy and investor engagement (including climate-related shareholder proposals and activism defense)
• Climate-related disclosures (e.g., TCFD, CDP, ISSB S2)
• Regulatory compliance and advocacy (e.g., SEC Climate Rule, California climate laws, UK CFD, CSRD)
• Governance and oversight
• Financing (including green and sustainability-linked bonds/loans, carbon finance)
• Carbon markets and offsets
• Technical consultants and software platforms
• M&A due diligence (physical and transition risk)
• Contract negotiations
• Climate change litigation

Business & Human Rights

Kirkland works with clients to develop business and human rights strategies tailored to their unique circumstances, goals, and risk profiles. A unique feature of our business and human rights practice is its integration into the Firm’s market-leading transactional practice. We work with clients to define leadership and best practices outside the context of disputes, in addition to representing clients in disputes when the need arises.

Capabilities include:

• International frameworks and guidance (e.g., various treaties, UNGC, UNGPs, OECD guidelines)
• Regulatory compliance and advocacy (e.g., Modern slavery laws, California Transparency in Supply Chains Act, UFLPA, CSDDD, Forced labor regulation)
• Investor engagement
• Governance and oversight
• M&A due diligence
• Project finance and development (e.g., codes of conduct, E&S assessments)
• Compliance programs and risk mitigation (including via contract negotiations)
• Crisis response and reputation management
• Dispute resolution (e.g., OECD NCPs, National Human Rights Commissions, UN Special Procedures and Rapporteurs, civil/criminal court cases)

Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion

Kirkland’s ESG & Impact Practice Group serves as comprehensive DEI counsel, working closely with litigation, labor and employment, privacy, congressional investigations and other teams within Kirkland. By integrating DEI counseling into all aspects of our practice, we help our clients mitigate risk, enhance stakeholder relationships and generate long-term value.

Capabilities include:

• Horizon scanning (e.g., for legislation, investigations and litigation)
• Risk Assessments and benchmarking
• Transactional support
• Social finance products (e.g., social or sustainability-linked bonds/loans)
• Government investigations, litigation and crisis response (including responding to pro- and anti-DEI demands and lawsuits by federal and state political actors)
• Internal investigations and independent audits (e.g., racial equity and pay equity audits)
• Disclosures and trainings