A new funding initiative aims to help legal professionals incorporate environmental and social considerations into commercial contracts, following a $650,000 (£485,000) grant awarded to The Chancery Lane Project by the US-based Patrick J. McGovern Foundation.
The funding will support the development of a benchmarking tool designed to help lawyers evaluate contracts against relevant legislation, regulations, industry standards and established frameworks. The initiative aims to make it easier for legal teams to assess how effectively contractual terms address climate and environmental objectives.
The proposed tool will assess several factors, including the potential climate impact of contractual provisions, the risk of greenwashing, and alignment with applicable legal and regulatory requirements.
It is expected to work across different types of commercial agreements, including contracts that use clauses developed by The Chancery Lane Project, provisions drafted internally by legal teams, and agreements that do not currently include specific climate-related terms.
By providing a structured assessment, the tool is intended to help lawyers compare contract drafts, identify potential gaps and consider improvements to their contractual approach.
Ben Metz, executive director of The Chancery Lane Project, said the organisation’s earlier funding had helped integrate its model clauses into tools already used by legal professionals. The next stage is to help users assess the effectiveness of the clauses and contractual provisions they produce.
Part of the grant will also support the development of new model contract clauses addressing the environmental impact of artificial intelligence (AI).
As AI becomes increasingly integrated into professional services and business operations, contractual provisions may play a role in addressing its environmental footprint. The project intends to develop practical clauses that help legal teams consider these issues when drafting and negotiating agreements.
The work builds on the project’s existing efforts to make climate-conscious contractual drafting more accessible to lawyers and businesses.
The Chancery Lane Project has stated that the resources and tools developed through the programme will be shared openly for public benefit. This approach aims to make climate-conscious legal drafting more widely accessible across the legal profession.
The Patrick J. McGovern Foundation supports initiatives using artificial intelligence and data science to promote a sustainable, equitable and prosperous future. The latest grant follows an earlier award of $250,000 to The Chancery Lane Project.
The initiative highlights the growing role of commercial contracts in addressing environmental considerations, alongside emerging questions about sustainability and the use of AI in business.
