With an increasing number of companies implementing environmental, social and governance (ESG) initiatives, ESG strategies are becoming more nuanced and complex. This update provides an overview of ESG antitrust concerns and strategies companies should consider to help avoid — or in some cases, proactively manage — antitrust scrutiny before implementing ESG efforts. Pharmaceutical companies’ ESG strategy will have distinct differences from (but also some similarities to) an energy company’s or a widget manufacturer’s ESG strategy. Antitrust Law Implicated by ESG Efforts: The BasicsFoundational Antitrust ConceptsTo help analyze where antitrust and ESG intersect, it is important to understand fundamental antitrust concepts. Antitrust counsel can help ensure that companies are balancing the complexities of ESG initiatives and their antitrust implications.

Source: Wall Street Journal July 11, 2023 15:13 UTC