Sustainability Management: The Role of the Legal Department

Federico Piccaluga, General Counsel, Duferco Participation Holdings SA, Switzerland

In recent years we have observed a rising internal and external pressure on companies to improve their sustainability-related performances; companies responded with an exponential increase in sustainability reporting and planning activities, across all sectors. As a result of this increased demand in terms of commitment, in-house counsel are often asked to take the lead in managing sustainability within the company. Compliance with current regulations in the ESG areas (Environment, Social and Corporate Governance) represents the common ground between sustainability management and legal department activities: furthermore in-house counsels have a privileged position in order to lead and drive real change and move beyond mere compliance with regulatory requirements. The aim of this paper is to analyze the growing interconnections between the legal department and sustainability management and to discuss how the in-house counsel can play a coordinating and leadership role across different departments for the definition of a sustainability plan and the disclosure of the company’s activities.

Duferco is a highly qualified and diversified Group operating in more than 20 countries, with its core activities in the Energy, Industrial, Shipping and Investment businesses. Founded by Bruno Bolfo in 1979, initially active in the steel trade, during the 1990s the Group acquired industrial plants in Europe, becoming an important steel producer. In recent years the Group has also been increasingly active in selected sectors, in particular renewable energies, shipping and innovation. At the beginning of 2021 Duferco confirmed a fundamental investment for the history of the Group: the construction of a new rolling mill that will crown a 25-year-old industrial dream: verticalize the steel production and become one of the most performing beams producers in Europe. Duferco aims to develop a strong portfolio of activities that could grow sustainably over the next years while producing long-term risk-adjusted returns on equity investments which are above average of their respective sectors. (https://www.duferco.com/the-duferco-group/)