The impact of corporate sustainability on directors’ duties and liabilities

This book offers a timely and in-depth analysis of how corporate sustainability is reshaping corporate law, focusing on directors’ duties and liabilities. With a comparative study of France and the Netherlands, it provides essential insights for legal professionals navigating evolving EU and national frameworks.

As sustainability becomes a central concern in corporate governance, this book explores how corporate law is adapting to meet environmental and social challenges. It provides a comprehensive analysis of directors’ duties and liabilities in light of corporate sustainability, combining EU-level developments with national perspectives from two selected Member States, France and the Netherlands.

The publication examines key EU legislation, including the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) and the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD), and how these directives influence national legal frameworks. Through a comparative legal approach, the book highlights both harmonized European trends and nuanced national differences, offering a rich understanding of how sustainability is being codified and interpreted in corporate law.

By integrating doctrinal research, case law, and corporate practices, the book delivers practical and theoretical insights. It critically assesses current legal standards (lex lata) and proposes forward-looking reforms (lex ferenda), making it a valuable resource for academics, legal practitioners, policymakers, and members of the judiciary.

This publication equips readers to navigate the complex and evolving legal landscape of corporate sustainability, offering clarity and depth in a field that is rapidly transforming under the pressure of climate change and social responsibility.

Target Audience
The impact of corporate sustainability on directors’ duties and liabilities is primarily intended for academics, corporate practitioners, lawyers, claimants, policymakers, legislators, and members of the judiciary who are concerned with both the theoretical and practical implications of sustainability in corporate law. It supports the work of these groups in two key ways. First, it provides a solid conceptual and theoretical framework for corporate sustainability by drawing on a broad range of doctrinal insights. Second, it offers a detailed legal and practical analysis of the impact of corporate sustainability on the codification of directors’ duties, the current and potential interpretations of these duties, and the impact of such codification and interpretations on directors’ internal and external liability.

The impact of corporate sustainability on directors’ duties and liabilities
-In-depth analysis of directors’ duties and liabilities in the context of sustainability.
-Comparative legal study of France and the Netherlands.
-Coverage of key EU directives: CSRD and CSDDD.
-Integration of legal theory, case law, and corporate practices.
-Practical guidance for legal professionals and policymakers.