Climate Change: Directors at Risk
Friday, October 20, 2017 @ Osgoode Professional Development, 1 Dundas Street West, 26th Floor (map)
** Webcast Attendance Available **
Registration & Continental Breakfast: 8:30am / Conference Starts: 9:00am
Conference Fee: General Admission: $100 (plus HST) / Student Rate: $25 (plus HST)
Eligible CPD Hours: LSUC (ON): 5h 30m Substantive CPD Hours. OsgoodePD programs may be eligible for CPD/MCLE credits in other Canadian and US jurisdictions. To inquire about credit eligibility, please contact cpd@osgoode.yorku.ca
Climate change is real—and so is the litigation.
In the past three months
- Kinder Morgan Canada’s public offering of securities was challenged for using overly optimistic projections for the future demand for oil;
- Global oil majors, including two Canadian companies, have been sued in California for their contributions to sea-level rise;
- Oil and gas companies have been sued for overstating the value of their reserves, in light of the Paris agreement.
These are just the most recent of close to 700 climate change cases in the courts in the U.S. and Canada today.
Don’t miss your chance to hear from experts as they answer questions, including: What are the obligations of officers and directors in Canada in light of such developments? What risks do companies face? What information must informed investors have? and, What are leading Canadian companies doing to transition to a low-carbon economy?
CONFERENCE PROGRAM
8:30 Registration & Continental Breakfast
9:00 Opening Remarks: Prof. Cynthia WILLIAMS, Osler Chair in Business and Law, Osgoode Hall Law School, York University
9:10 Canada’s Unique Challenges and Responsibilities /
Climate Risk and Stranded Assets: Implications for Canada
Ben CALDECOTT, Director, Sustainable Finance Programme, Smith School for Enterprise and the Environment, University of Oxford
9:45 What Liability Risks Exist for Directors Who Ignore Climate Risk? Is there a “duty to mitigate?”
Chair: Sarah BARKER, Special Counsel, Minter Ellison, Melbourne, Australia
Panelists:
Kristin CASPER, Litigation Counsel, Global Climate Justice and Liability Project, based at Greenpeace Canada
David ESTRIN, Senior Partner, Gowlings, and Academic Co-Director, Osgoode Hall Law School Environmental Justice and Sustainability Clinic
Andrew MacDOUGALL, Partner, Osler Hoskin & Harcourt, LLP
11:00 Break
11:15 Jane AMBACHTSHEER (by webcast), Partner and Chair of Mercer’s Global Responsible Investment Business, Mercer (Paris Office), and Member, Financial Stability Board’s Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosure
11:30 What Climate Disclosure Do Investors Expect? What Climate Disclosure Do Regulators Require? Will the Task Force on Climate Financial Disclosure Standards be Sufficient to Close the Gap?
Chair: Prof. Cristie FORD, Peter Allard School of Law, University of British Colombia
Panelists:
Jo-Anne MATEAR, Manager, Corporate Finance Branch, Ontario Securities Commission
Judy COTTE, Head of Corporate Governance and Responsible Investment, RBC Global Asset Management
Sarah BARKER, Special Counsel, Minter Ellison, Melbourne, Australia
12:30 Lunch
1:30 Best Practice Accounting and Corporate Governance for Identifying and Managing Climate Risk
Chair: Julie DESJARDINS, President, Desjardins & Associates
Panelists:
Sarah KEYES, Principal, Research, Guidance and Support, Certified Professional Accountants (CPA) Canada
Catherine JACKSON, Consultant and Chair, Remuneration Committee, International Corporate Governance Network
Gigi DAWE, Director, Corporate Oversight and Governance, Certified Professional Accountants (CPA) Canada
2:30 What are leading companies in Canada doing to transition to a low-carbon economy?
Chair: Prof. Dirk MATTEN, Hewlett Packard Chair of Responsible Business, Schulich School of Business, York University
Panelists:
Patricia KOVAL, Partner (retired), Tory’s
Laura ZIZZO, CEO of Zizzo Strategies
Dr. Paul BOOTHE, Commissioner, Canada’s Ecofiscal Commission, and Fellow, the Institute for Competitiveness and Prosperity
3:30 Closing Remarks: Prof. Cynthia WILLIAMS, Osler Chair in Business Law, Osgoode Hall Law School, York University
Reception