Pinsent Masons launches new advisory proposition to help boards close the growing ‘say–do gap’ in climate and sustainability disclosures

The offering responds to heightened scrutiny on directors’ duties and the emerging liability risks linked to climate transition plans, sustainability reporting and forward‑looking disclosures. As regulators tighten standards and litigation trends accelerate globally, the firm’s new service aims to support organisations in building credible, science‑based transition plans underpinned by strong governance and robust implementation pathways.

Hayden Morgan, Partner and sustainability specialist at Pinsent Masons, said: “Across sectors, but particularly in financial services, directors are now operating under a fundamentally different landscape. Expectations around climate and sustainability disclosures are rising fast, driven by new UK and international standards, and boards are increasingly accountable for forward‑looking statements.”

The UK’s incoming ISSB‑aligned disclosure rules, integration of the Transition Plan Taskforce (TPT) framework, and the FCA’s strengthened sustainability reporting requirements for asset managers, have accelerated the need for board‑level action.

Morgan added: “The risk is a widening ‘say–do gap’: companies are making public commitments, but many lack the internal governance and implementation frameworks needed to deliver them. That exposes directors to litigation, regulatory action, and major reputation and business resilience risks. Our proposition helps them close that gap.”

The new proposition provides senior leadership teams with:

• Equipping directors and GCs with clarity on their duties, upcoming regulatory expectations and the litigation landscape.
• Identifying where transition plans, disclosures and governance processes fall short of good practice and regulatory standards.
• Ensuring business strategy is aligned to credible net-zero pathways and embedded across functions, board committees and operational teams.
• Helping boards understand the implications across Risk, Regulation, Reputation and Business Resilience — with value creation opportunities where relevant.

“Despite recent noise around ESG, the signal is clear,” Morgan added. “Climate risk, sustainability governance and human rights risks aren’t optional extras, they affect the bottom line. This is now business‑critical. Directors need confidence that their public commitments are supported by credible, defensible plans. We’re helping them get there.”

Pinsent Masons has already supported leading financial services organisations, including major asset managers and insurers, to produce transition plans and board-level papers aligned with best practice.