UK law firm TLT has signed the Greener Litigation Pledge as part of its aim to be a net zero business by 2025 and to support its clients with their own sustainability goals.
Signatories commit to actively reducing, with a view to minimising, the environmental impacts of litigation in the English and Welsh courts, including the two principal sources of emissions incurred by litigants: printed documents and domestic and international travel. TLT will also be adopting these sustainable business practices in Scotland and Northern Ireland.
TLT’s pledge supports its wider plans to reduce the use of paper and carbon-intensive travel by staff both in the office and at home, including through employee engagement and awareness programmes, new firmwide policies and new tools and technologies.
The Greener Litigation collective was launched by Mishcon de Reya and is part of the Greener Litigation Project, which aims to reduce the carbon footprint of court disputes in line with the objective of restricting global warming to 1.5°C as set out in the 2015 Paris Agreement.
Signatories also commit to engaging with courts and other fora to support change, and to actively promote the steps they are taking as part of the project.
Mark Routley, partner at TLT who signed the pledge, says: “Sustainability is a key part of our firm strategy and we have set the ambitious target of becoming net zero by 2025, which requires a firmwide approach to reducing our carbon emissions and litigation is absolutely a key part of that.
“We are pleased to join this effort to raise awareness of and reduce the environmental impact of litigation and to help ensure that the most environmentally sustainable options become the norm.
“The pandemic has forced lawyers and litigants to adopt more environmentally friendly practices in litigation, whether that’s remote hearings or greater use of electronic bundles, and it’s essential that we do everything in our power to continue to ease litigation’s burden on the planet.”
If you would like to sign the Greener Litigation Pledge, or would be interested participating in future Greener Litigation initiatives, please visit www.greenerlitigation.org or contact info@greenerlitigation.org.
