Authored by Dr. Janis Sarra, Professor of Law at the University of British Columbia, with contributing authors Meghan Harris-Ngae, Ernst & Young, Roopa Davé, KPMG, and Ravipal Bains, McMillan LLP, this guide draws together current legal standards and best practice guidance for Canadian audit committees, to assist them in taking a leadership role in effective climate governance. It offers practical tips for audit committees navigating a rapidly changing climate governance landscape.

Audit committees are commonly delegated responsibility to undertake detailed scrutiny and oversight of financial reporting processes with key role in determining how the company’s strategies and financial results are communicated to investors, regulators, and other stakeholders. Given the growing direct and indirect financial impacts of climate change, boards of directors have a duty to adopt a climate action strategy to tackle what Canadian courts have called “an existential threat to human civilization and the global ecosystem”.

This is a Canada Climate Law Initiative publication.