Recent signs of spring are lifting our spirits, reinforced by the commitment of LSA member firms to put the urgent issue of climate change at the heart of their operations; efforts recently celebrated by strong representation of the LSA on the Legal ESG Awards shortlists.

Please explore the resources and events on offer and keep on telling us how we can refine them for maximum effect. This month look out for, in particular, the sign up link to our in-person seminar exploring the power of collective action and the role of CSRD in driving transformational change taking place on Wednesday 2^nd April at 11am, an event kindly hosted by Linklaters.

• A new blog "Empowering Action – How to start an environment and sustainability team in your law firm"
• LSA member offer of a free pilot podcast for three firms
• Information and a call out for the Carbon Counting Working Group
• News from the LSA membership
• LSA schedule of events with registration links
• Sustainability dates for your diary

While we might feel disempowered by shifts in international policy, there is much we can action in our immediate lives to ensure that we are playing our part to tackle the climate and nature crises. So, if you have colleagues eager to take action, why not set up a 'green team'? Lauren Spencer, Manager at Fragomen, recently did just that and shares her top tips in this blog.

Please do distribute this content (or any parts of it) internally, externally - in anyway that helps.

Allocated to the first three firms to book their place by emailing comms@legalsustainabilityalliance.com.

The LSA's lifeblood is collaboration, with members sharing ideas and information, across disciplines and across firms. 

Are you new to Carbon Counting? This is a call out for members to join the Carbon Counting Working Group which explores ways to support members with the basics of measuring carbon impact, to identify challenges with obtaining data and how to overcome these. We need YOUR input to help us develop these materials. 

The LSA Carbon Counting Working Group aims to meet every six to eight weeks, for one to one and half hours. Approximately one meeting in four will be in person. Groups are chaired by a mix of industry experts and volunteers from LSA firms. Members of the group are expected to participate fully in the discussions, to ask questions and share information and ideas. See our Terms of Reference for further details.

The groups operate under Chatham House rules, creating a space for open dialogue and the sharing of both positive and challenging experiences. 

If you are interested in joining please email Camilla on manager@legalsustainabilityalliance.com.

Jim Haywood is Founder and MD of independent sustainability consultancy Woodman Farrow. He has a long involvement with the LSA and continues to work alongside Achill Legal in support of members’ carbon reduction ambitions. As well as providing bespoke advice on carbon accounting, target setting and reduction strategies, Jim developed the LSA’s Carbon Calculator and associated resources. 

Jim’s long career has been varied, building on an engineering foundation forged in the Royal Navy and honed in various sustainability-related senior roles with international businesses, the UK’s Environment Agency and royal charity Business in the Community.  His career includes:

• Setting up and managing the EA’s National Flood Warning Centre
• Developing the ‘Mayday’ climate change engagement initiative on behalf of the former Prince of Wales
• Establishing an integrated globalised health, safety and environment management system for blue chip corporate
• Chairing an external compliance assurance committee for the Carbon Trust
• Latterly, becoming a ‘citizen scientist’ as a qualified river fly tester – enabling the quality of local rivers in his home in the county of Somerset to be better understood

Member News

Congratulations to Weightmans, Dentons, RPC, Weil Gotshal & Manges, DWF, Freeths, Shoosmiths, Burges Salmon, Macfarlanes and Pinsent Masons who have all been shortlisted at the Legal ESG Awards 2025.

Upcoming Events and Webinars

Why CSRD still matters in the face of Omnibus turmoil

2nd April - 11am to 1.30pm
Linklaters, One Silk Street, London EC2Y 8HQ

EXCLUSIVE IN-PERSON EVENT FOR LSA MEMBERS ONLY 

As the Omnibus threatens to pause progress, we explore how to keep eyes on the transformation prize.

The Omnibus has dominated the discourse, threatening to pause progress and causing widespread uncertainty. But in the face of extreme weather events, raging wildfires and widespread human rights abuses, ‘stopping the clock’ is not an option. Amidst increasing adversity and political tensions, we must ask ourselves: what is driving us, the regulation or the need for transformation?

Join us, and CSRD experts Radley Yeldar, the creative consultancy specialising in sustainability and reporting, as we explore the power of collective action and cross-functional expertise to drive transformational change in line with the original intent outlined within CSRD: business transformation towards a more sustainable economy.

Interested in joining this event but not yet an LSA member? Sign up here.

Sustainability Dates for Your Diary

This isn't a comprehensive list, but these are the dates that have caught our attention:

World Water Day - 22nd March
Taking action to tackle the global water crisis. A core focus of World Water Day is to support the achievement of Sustainable Development Goal 6: water and sanitation for all by 2030.