Perkins Coie LLP

10/11/2021 | News release | Archived content

Gwen Williamson Quoted in Fund Directions—As SEC Sharpens Focus on ESG, Boards Need Look Into Fund Policies and Disclosures

Partner Gwen Williamson was quoted in "As SEC Sharpens Focus on ESG, Boards Need Look Into Fund Policies and Disclosures" an article in Fund Directions,* regarding the definition of environmental, social, and governance (ESG).

"What I've done with both adviser and fund clients is take those [exam letters] and sit them down next to the current practice, which includes all public statements regarding ESG that the firm has made and what their current policies and procedures are around basically documenting those claims," says Perkins Coie partner Gwendolyn Williamson. "There's a lot more to ESG than just documenting claims and greenwashing, but it is a huge focus of this ... first big pass-through on the SEC's part."

With every firm able to create its own definition for ESG, fund directors overseeing ESG funds need to know the definition underlying their funds' strategies.

"The board also needs to understand what the adviser's longer-term, big-picture vision on ESG is, because there's so many different approaches to it out there," Gwen says.