Lawyer Monthly - November 2021 Edition

MONTHLY ROUND-UP The UK’s competition regulator has fined social media giant Facebook £50.5 million (approximately $70 million) for breaching an order imposed during its investigation into Facebook’s purchase of GIF platform Giphy. Transatlantic law firmWomble Bond Dickinson has become the latest law firm to set out its goals for increased sustainability. The firm aims to run all its offices on renewable energy by 2026 and is committed to achieving net-zero emissions by 2030. WOMBLE BOND DICKINSON PLANS TO RUN ALL OFFICES ON RENEWABLE ENERGY BY 2026 In a news update on its web- site, Womble Bond Dickinson (WBD) said it has “always been ahead of the curve when it comes to environ- mental management”. WBD already procures renewable energy in five of its seven UK offices and reports that close to 50% of the energy used in the UK comes from renew- able sources. A shift towards increased home working throughout the pandemic and a drop in business travel also saw a substantial de- crease in carbon emissions for the firm. Moving forward, WBD has set out a list of impressive goals for increased sustainability. This list includes plans for all WBD offices to use 100% renewably sourced energy by 2026, reduce paper con- sumption by 60% by 2026, reduce plastic consumption at all WBD locations, and low- er emissions associated with travel by 2026, a goal that will be supported by the firm’s new hybrid working model. In the news update, Nick Bar- wood, UK Chair and head of WBD’s senior management group overseeing responsi- ble business activity across the firm, said: “Developing and stretching our environ- mental targets is core to our business and announcing our Carbon Reduction Plan this week is a major step on our roadmap to achieving net- zero emissions by 2030. “I acknowledge that this is a challenging target but I want WBD to play its part in a cleaner and greener future for all and we will continue, as we always have, to work col- laboratively with our people, clients and suppliers so we can consistently measure, re- port and reduce our impact on the environment and all take positive action on cli- mate change.” LM UK FINES FACEBOOK $70 MILLION FOR BREACHING ORDER IN GIPHY DEAL The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said the social media giant had purposefully failed to comply with its order. The UK’s competition regulator also said that the penalty imposed served as a warning that no company was above the law. In recent times, Facebook’s business practices have caused it to increasingly come under fire from regulators and lawmakers. According to the CMA, Facebook failed to provide complete updates about its compliance with requirements to continue to compete with Giphy and failed not to integrate Giphy’s operations with its own while investigations were underway. Despite numerous warnings, the social media giant did not provide the necessary information, the CMA said. The regulator believes its failure to comply was deliberate. However, Facebook has said, “We strongly disagree with the CMA’s unfair decision to punish Facebook for a best effort compliance approach, which the CMA itself ultimately approved. “We will review the CMA’s decision and consider our options.” LM 7 NOV 2021 | WWW.LAWYER-MONTHLY.COM