Background

On 1 May 2007, HRH The Prince of Wales convened a summit of UK business leaders calling for an urgent response to the problem of climate change. Recognising the need for large scale action, DLA Piper and Business in the Community saw an opportunity for the legal sector to work together to contribute to the solution. Joining forces with the Law Society of England and Wales they conceived an initiative which would uniquely focus on reducing the environmental impacts of the legal profession by drawing on its skills and experience.

A further 17 law firms and the Environmental Law Foundation joined to become the founding members of the Alliance, contributing financially to appoint a dedicated Manager and committing the time of their senior executives and operational experts to lead the programme of work.

At the inaugural meeting of the founding members in November 2007, priority areas were identified for the legal sector to respond to climate change, both directly through its own activities and indirectly through its influence over clients, suppliers and government.

The LSA has developed a set of principles which, through their wide scale adoption, will enable the legal sector to respond positively and collectively to climate change, by reducing its own carbon footprint and influencing key stakeholders to reduce theirs.

To ensure that the principles are appropriate to law firms of any size, specialism or location, as well as to identify potential barriers and examples of environmental best practice an extensive programme of online and face-to-face consultation with the profession was carried out prior to their launch.

Click here to find out how you can get involved.

The Prince’s Mayday Network

The Legal Sector Alliance was inspired by The Prince’s Mayday Network, which was founded by HRH The Prince of Wales in 2007. The Network began as a one day event, a call to action to business to pledge their commitments to tackling climate change. It is now a year round movement, a collaboration of businesses taking action on climate change and resource depletion.

Mayday businesses work together and with partners to seek out and promote the best solutions to the major environmental challenges we face. When taken to scale these new innovations contribute to creating the pathway to better ways of working and to a sustainable future in which businesses can prosper alongside a healthy environment and society. These tried and tested business solutions are stored on the free-to-access Mayday Journey. All members of the Legal Sector Alliance are automatically given membership to the Network and are able to use their online tools and watch webinars for free. For more information visit www.maydaynetwork.com