Morrison Foerster’s MoFo Impact blog provides insights on the latest news, developments, and trends in the impact and social entrepreneurship space. Through MoFo Impact, Morrison Foerster attorneys dedicated to impact investing and social enterprise work offer a real-time assessment of the developments in matters that are shaping the industry. Here, we examine the unique challenges faced by social enterprises and impact investors, including issues related to impact investments, disclosure requirements, hybrid corporate forms, fiduciary duties, and beyond.<h2>ABOUT MORRISON FOERSTER</h2>Morrison Foerster is a leading global law firm that transforms complexity into advantage for its clients. Our clients include some of the largest financial institutions, banks, consulting and accounting firms, and Fortune 100, technology, and life sciences companies. Highlighting the firm’s commitment to client service, leadership in market-changing deals and impact litigation, and values-based culture, Morrison Foerster has been repeatedly recognized as one of the top 10 firms on The American Lawyer’s A-List. Year after year, the firm receives significant recognition from Chambers and The Legal 500 across their various guides, including Global, USA, Asia‑Pacific, Europe, UK, Latin America, and FinTech Legal. Our lawyers passionately care about delivering legal excellence while living our values. Morrison Foerster has a long-standing commitment to creating a culture that respects and celebrates differences, while providing an inclusive environment. The firm has achieved Mansfield Certification Plus since 2018 as a result of successfully reaching at least 30 percent women, communities of color, and LGBTQ+ lawyer representation in a notable number of current leadership roles and committees. The firm also has a long history of commitment to the community and society through providing pro bono legal services, including litigating for civil rights and civil liberties, improving public education and fostering the wellbeing of children, advocating for veterans, promoting international human rights, enforcing the right to asylum, and safeguarding the environment.

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Susan (“Suz”) co-chairs the ESG + Sustainability and Social Enterprise + Impact Investing practices. Her practice focuses on late-stage financings, secondaries, and other corporate transactions for investors, such as SoftBank and Temasek, and on investments for some of the top investors dedicated to impact, from “impact first” foundations to family offices to private equity funds. She co-led the drafting group for the first of the new corporate forms (the Social Purpose Corporation in California), has created hybrid/tandem corporate structures and crafted debt and equity instruments that blend impact with traditional financial terms, and has used corporate law to develop creative capital market solutions to pressing environmental problems. She also advises the boards of public and private companies on corporate governance and fiduciary duties as applied to sustainability and climate change.She was named a California Lawyer Attorney of the Year (CLAY) in 2012 and 2016 by Daily Journal and the Most Innovative Lawyer in North America in 2015 by the Financial Times.Leading Business AdvisorA powerhouse negotiator, clients note that “you cannot get a better corporate counsel” and that Suz “understands the big picture, could not be more responsive, and understands the business” (The Legal 500 US). She has extensive experience providing corporate and finance advice to companies and investors in connection with growth equity financings and secondaries, with particular experience in late-stage investments that have come to rival traditional strategic acquisitions in size and significance. Her experience includes leading some of the highest-profile late-stage investments over the past few years, including notable transactions for SoftBank Group (in the two largest private tender offers in history) in its $7.7 billion investment in Uber, $4.4 billion investment in WeWork, further $10 billion investment in WeWork, $1 billion investment in SoFi, and $250 million investment in Kabbage. She has also advised Temasek on its $800 million investment in Verily Life Sciences, Intel on its equity investment in Cloudera, and each of Fortress, TPG Rise, Vision Ridge Partners, Generation Investment Management, and Pontifax AgTech in numerous mid- to late-stage investments in clean technology, sustainability, education, food, and agriculture technology.Social Enterprise and Impact InvestingSuz is the go-to legal resource for social enterprises (for-profit and non-profit companies focused on social or environmental purpose), impact investors (investors interested in social or environmental returns), and mainstream companies developing environmental, social, and corporate governance policies. With deep expertise in the impact investing model, institutional investors exploring the space turn to her for creative solutions and her ability to structure both investments and companies to emphasize impact and returns.She represents a wide range of investors who are focused on impact, from foundations like the Gates Foundation, The Nature Conservancy, and The Rockefeller Foundation, to family offices like Armonia, Cornerstone Capital, Emerson Collective, New Island Capital, and Omidyar Network, to private equity funds like Goldman Sachs, TPG Rise, Vision Ridge Partners, and Generation Investment Management, in their equity investments in companies and projects that are focused on generating impact and returns for investors. She has deep experience and expertise ensuring energy, sustainability, and other investments have positive impact through the use of new corporate forms, hybrid or “tandem” structures with non-profits and for-profits, and alternative debt and equity instruments.Notable work in this space includes the establishment of a tandem structure, The Carbon Endowment, to retire coal assets at scale while securing a revenue stream for community reinvestment and job training in coal communities. Suz also advised on the structuring of Common Sense Growth as an extension of the non-profit Common Sense Media (to invest in companies that address issues related to children, education, and technology), the establishment of a fund for TPG Rise to provide debt financing to Echoing Green fellows, the spin-out of PRX from Public Radio International (to generate new revenue flows up to the non-profit), the establishment of a for-profit joint venture with non-profit Medicines360 (to allow the non-profit to distribute its healthcare products to women in the developing world), and the structuring of a for-profit evergreen fund that allows The Nature Conservancy to aggregate return-seeking and donor capital in order to invest in preserving our natural resources. She has also advised numerous clients on converting to a public benefit corporation or social purpose corporation model (which requires balancing traditional fiduciary duties against a social or environmental purpose), including This American Life, Revolution Foods, Rise Labs, and Beneficial State Bancorp.Suz also regularly advises boards of directors of private and public companies, special committees, and CEOs on corporate governance, particularly the intersection of fiduciary duties with sustainability, and focuses on environmental, social, and governance issues.Unmatched Cleantech and Renewable Energy ExperienceIn addition to founding and chairing the firm’s Social Enterprise and Impact Investing Group, Suz serves as Chair of Morrison & Foerster’s Energy Group and has extensive experience representing start-up to late stage private companies in the clean technology or sustainability space. She provides corporate and finance advice in connection with equity and debt financings, mergers, acquisitions, asset purchases and sales, reorganizations, and joint ventures. She has experience working with renewable energy start-up companies and renewable energy developers in the solar, wind, and biofuels industries. Suz has assisted renewable energy start up companies with raising venture capital and has advised renewable energy developers on project acquisitions.Suz’s representative renewable energy, cleantech, sustainable, and social enterprise clients include Anaergia, Change.org, EDF Renewables, E.ON, Etsy, First Look, OneSun, Planet Labs, Rising Sun Energy, RSF Social Finance, SustainBio, Trelys, Inc., Wikipedia, and Xpansiv.Board Activity and Thought LeadershipMs. Mac Cormac was a founding board member of the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB), is a member of the board of directors of Business for Social Responsibility (BSR), the Ceres President’s Council, and the Earth Genome Project, and is an advising board member of the Committee Encouraging Corporate Philanthropy’s Strategic Investor Initiative.She has joined the faculty (teaching on the intersection of sustainability and fiduciary duties) at both the Stanford Director’s College and the Northwestern Corporate Counsel Institute and is an adjunct professor at UC Berkeley School of Law, teaching a course on Social Enterprise.

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Our ESG + Sustainability lawyers work side by side with each company and investor to identify the elements of ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) that are most material for a particular business or industry.

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Ranked #1 U.S. Overall Leader in Lamp House’s Global Review of Law Firms’ Responsible Business Activity

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Recognized with the Environment & Sustainability: Innovation Award (Private Practice)

Named the winner of the California Legal Awards’ Environmental, Social, and Governance Initiative Category

Susan (“Suz”) co-chairs the ESG + Sustainability and Social Enterprise + Impact Investing practices. Her work focuses on advising innovative sustainable companies and investors, with particular expertise on ensuring investments have positive impact through use of new corporate forms, hybrids, alternative debt and equity instruments and disclosure.

Susan (“Suz”) co-chairs the Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) and Social Enterprise + Impact Investing practices. Her work focuses on advising innovative sustainable companies and investors, with particular expertise on ensuring investments have positive impact through use of new corporate forms, hybrids, alternative debt and equity instruments and disclosure.

<h5 dir="ltr">As Chair of the firm’s Social Enterprise + Impact Investing and Energy + CleanTech practice groups, I find it uniquely fulfilling to help emerging companies and their investors channel great ideas and good intentions into tangible, positive change.</h5>How I Help: I have extensive experience representing startup to late-stage private companies primarily in the clean technology, renewable energy and sustainability space. I counsel on corporate and finance matters in connection with equity and debt financings, mergers, acquisitions, asset purchases and sales, reorganizations, and joint ventures. I’m frequently called upon for my expertise in new corporate forms, hybrid of “tandem” structures with non-profits and for-profits, and alternative debt and equity instruments. I also regularly advise boards of private and public companies, special committees, and CEOs on corporate governance as it relates to sustainability and CSR.Favorite app or tech product: Strava. I love tracking the miles I run each week.Favorite place for client meetings: A walk in the PresidioLife beyond the law: When I’m not preaching to the world about the power of corporate form, I spend my time outside the office with my three young sons. I currently coach my youngest’s little league team. Go Pirates!

Susan Mac Cormac

Alfredo Silva is a partner in the Transactions Department, co-chair of the firm's Social Enterprise and Impact Investing Group, and a member of the ESG Strategy Committee. Alfredo represents companies and investors in a broad range of corporate and securities law matters, with a focus on businesses in the life sciences, agtech and fintech sectors. Alfredo’s practice includes capital markets transactions, venture capital, growth equity and corporate venture financings, tender offers and other secondary offerings, digital token matters, and mergers and acquisitions. Alfredo also helps clients leverage environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors to evaluate risk and opportunities and to invest responsibly in businesses seeking sustainable growth and impact.In his private company practice, Alfredo has served as company or investor counsel in early- and late-stage financings, minority strategic investments and impact investments in dozens of private companies, including representation of SoftBank and SoftBank Vision Fund in financings with a combined value of over $2 billion, Temasek in its $800 million minority investment in Verily Life Sciences, an Alphabet company, and Visa Ventures in strategic fintech investments around the world.In his public company practice, Alfredo counsels issuers on strategic transactions, such as the stock-for-stock merger of Marrone Bio Innovations, Inc. with Bioceres Crop Solutions Corp, as well as corporate governance and compliance with the U.S. federal securities laws and stock exchange listing standards, including advising on cutting-edge issues with respect to ESG disclosures and materiality assessments.In addition, Alfredo works extensively with nonprofit organizations, providing advice on fiduciary issues, entity formation, structuring and other corporate matters, and assists small businesses pro bono. He incorporated and continues to advise Illuminate, the nonprofit producer of The Bay Lights, a 25,000 LED sculpture on the western span of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge, in structuring, corporate governance, and project management matters. Alfredo currently chairs the audit committees of the boards of directors of Eat. Learn. Play. Foundation, a charity founded by four-time NBA champion Stephen Curry and The New York Times bestselling author Ayesha Curry to unleash the potential of every child, and Berkeley Repertory Theatre, an international leader in innovative theater whose shows have won eight Tony Awards, nine Obie Awards and a Pulitzer Prize, among many other honors.Alfredo is recognized by The Recorder as a 2013 Lawyer on the Fast Track, in 2014 was the inaugural recipient of the firm’s Kathi Pugh Award for Pro Bono Service, is a 2017 Lawyers Committee for Legal Diversity Fellow, and was the recipient of the American Bar Association’s 2023 National Public Service Award. Alfredo received his B.S. degree, cum laude with distinction, in Engineering Sciences (Chemical) from Yale College in 2004 and received his J.D. degree from Yale Law School in 2008. Alfredo speaks conversational Spanish and Mandarin Chinese, and spent a year at China’s Tsinghua University researching issues in intellectual property protection on a Fulbright Fellowship.

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We are a leading law firm with capital markets and corporate finance lawyers advising issuers, agents and underwriters in a range of private and public financings.

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Alfredo Silva is co-chair of the firms Social Enterprise + Impact Investing practice and member of the firm’s Pro Bono Committee. He represents public and private companies and investors in a broad range of corporate and securities law matters, as well as nonprofit organizations on entity formation, fiduciary issues, and structuring.

Alfredo B. D. Silva represents public and private technology companies and strategic and financial investors in a broad range of capital markets transactions, early- and late-stage financings, and corporate governance matters in a variety of industries, including Life Sciences, Health Tech, FinTech, and SaaS.

Alfredo Silva is co-chair of the Morrison Foerster Social Enterprise + Impact Investing practice and member of the firm’s Pro Bono Committee. He represents public and private companies and investors in a broad range of corporate and securities law matters, as well as nonprofit organizations on entity formation, fiduciary issues, and structuring.

<h5 dir="ltr">My job is to think creatively and balance competing interests to solve complicated problems, and the end result is that the companies I’m working with are able to raise the capital they need to grow, creating and maintaining jobs for others while bringing great products and services to consumers.</h5>How I help: I represent companies throughout their lifecycles, from entity formation to debt and equity financing to exit alternatives, including initial public offerings and mergers and acquisitions. I also counsel investors in venture financing, late stage / growth equity financing, strategic investments, secondary transactions, and impact investments in private companies in a wide variety of industries. Since I have a background in engineering, I get numbers, and often work closely with executives, finance teams, and financial advisors and analysts to model out complex capital structures, financing scenarios, and liquidity events. In doing so, I help clients analyze what’s possible, understand consequences of various transaction structures, and enhance their economics in deals in value from the tens of millions to the billions of dollars.Favorite app or tech product: I spend a lot of time these days checking Coinbase, seeing how the market reacts to developments in the cryptocurrency and blockchain spaces.Favorite place for client meetings: It’s great when you’re close enough with a client to catch up and talk shop at their house!Life beyond the law: Skiing at Lake Tahoe in the winter, weekends in Dolores Park in the summer, and travel to see family and friends in between.

Alfredo B. D. Silva

Benjamin Fox is a partner in the firm’s San Francisco office and a member of the firm’s Social Enterprise and Impact Investing Group. Benjamin’s practice focuses on the representation of clients in corporate and transactional matters, with a focus on investors and companies dedicated to pursuing social or environmental goals alongside financial returns.Benjamin counsels startup to late-stage private companies and venture capital and private equity investors, as well as family offices, private foundations, and public charities in early-stage and late-stage financings, mergers, acquisitions, asset purchases and sales, joint ventures, and hybrid or “tandem” structuring arrangements between nonprofit and for-profit entities. Benjamin has extensive experience working with investors and companies in the climate technology and infrastructure and sustainability space. He regularly advises clients on creative legal structures with respect to aggregating and deploying capital to maximize impact and returns.Benjamin earned his J.D. from the University of California, Berkeley, School of Law (Boalt Hall), with a certificate of specialization in both Environmental Law and Energy and Clean Technology Law. At Boalt, he served as an executive editor of Ecology Law Quarterly, a member of the California Law Review, and a judicial extern for the Honorable Edward M. Chen of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. Benjamin received the Ellis J. Harmon Prize for best legal writing in Environmental Law and Policy and was a NAPABA Law Foundation Scholarship recipient for commitment to serve the Asian Pacific American community.Prior to law school, Benjamin worked for the U.S. Department of Energy in Beijing, China and spent a year at Taiwan’s Tunghai University researching renewable energy and urban development policy on a Fulbright Fellowship. He earned his B.A. with distinction and highest honors from the University of Michigan.

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Morrison & Foerster is an international law firm with a committed practice in social impact investing—a practice we have championed for more than 20 years. 


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 Ranked #1 U.S. Overall Leader in Lamp House’s Global Review of Law Firms’ Responsible Business Activity

Benjamin Fox is a partner in the firm’s San Francisco office and a member of the firm’s Social Enterprise and Impact Investing Group. Benjamin’s practice focuses on the representation of clients in corporate and transactional matters, with a focus on investors and companies dedicated to pursuing social or environmental goals alongside financial returns.

Benjamin Fox is an associate in the Morrison Foerster Corporate Department in the San Francisco office. Benjamin is a member of the firm’s Social Enterprise and Impact Investing and Energy and Clean Technology Groups.

<h5 dir="ltr">I feel fortunate to assist companies and investors focused on tackling our most pressing global environmental and social challenges.</h5>How I help: I provide counsel to companies from formation until exit, including in connection with corporate structure and governance, early- and late-stage equity financings, mergers and acquisitions, and joint ventures.  As a member of our Social Enterprise + Impact Investing Group, I frequently advise clients on the legal tools available to promote mission-driven businesses, including attracting non-profit and for-profit capital, and utilizing hybrid non-profit/for-profit structures and new corporate forms.  I also have a particular expertise in the renewable energy sector and work closely with investors, renewable energy developers and cleantech startups on a wide range of corporate matters.Favorite app or tech product: GuitarTuna. It’s pretty good at tuning my guitar.Favorite place for client meetings: At a baseball game. Fenway Park will always be the best, but other stadiums will suffice.Life beyond the law: Enjoying the great outdoors.

Benjamin Fox

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Susan H. Mac Cormac

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Climate Links: 5/31/2024

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Climate Links: 4/26/2024

Suz Mac Cormac, chair of the firm’s Energy and Social Enterprise and Impact Investing practices, spoke to The Recorder about how climate issues have created opportunities for law firms and their clients to help create positive change.“At first, the change was gradual, starting with pro bono work,” Suz said, but along the way “companies…started to play more and more in that space.” Now, she says her impact investment clients act “with the intention to generate measurable social and environmental impact alongside a financial return.”Read the <a href="https://www.law.com/therecorder/2020/01/22/as-the-world-burns-law-firms-are-responding-with-climate-focused-practices-403-45309/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">full article</a> (subscription required).

As Wildlife Threats Grow Worldwide, Law Firms Build Climate-Focused Practices

Suz Mac Cormac, chair of the firm’s Energy and Social Enterprise and Impact Investing practices, spoke to The Recorder about how climate issues have created opp

As Wildlife Threats Grow Worldwide, Law Firms Build Climate-Focused Practices

The Recorder has named Susan “Suz” Mac Cormac to its list of Women Leaders in Tech Law. The award celebrates lawyers who tackle the tech industry’s biggest courtroom clashes, help build its most innovative companies, and negotiate deals that move markets.As highlighted by The Recorder, Suz continues to represent investors in complex cross-border transactions. She is not only a powerhouse corporate attorney representing clients like SoftBank and Temasek in large transactions; she is also the go-to legal resource for social enterprises (for-profit and nonprofit companies focused on social or environmental purposes), impact investors (investors interested in social or environmental returns), and mainstream companies developing environmental, social, and corporate governance policies.In an interview with The Recorder, Suz speaks about her proudest professional and personal achievements over the past year, as well as what it means to be a woman in the tech law space. You can find the article within the publication’s <a href="https://www.law.com/therecorder/2019/11/04/women-leaders-in-tech-law-susan-suz-mac-cormac-morrison-foerster/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Women Leaders in Tech Law</a> series.

Suz Mac Cormac Recognized as a Woman Leader in Tech Law

The Recorder has named Susan “Suz” Mac Cormac to its list of Women Leaders in Tech Law. The award celebrates lawyers who tackle the tech industry’s biggest cour

Suz Mac Cormac Recognized as a Woman Leader in Tech Law

ClientSmart interviewed Morrison & Foerster’s Suz Mac Cormac, chair of the firm’s Social Enterprise and Impact Investing and Energy practices, about the Business Roundtable’s adoption of a new “Statement on the Purpose of a Corporation.”The statement changes the definition of the purpose of a corporation to include not just shareholders but also stakeholders: customers, employees, suppliers, communities, and the environment. “I think there are three principal factors that [prompted the Roundtable’s action],” Suz said, noting that these include “the growing realization by CEOs and boards of directors…of the tie between environmental, social, and governance factors (ESG) and shareholder value,” as well as shareholder pressure and employee activism. “I think the CEOs and the Roundtable felt pressure to make a statement that would signal they are paying attention to these various voices.”Suz says that there is “definitely a significant move” in the direction of C corps adopting a Statement of Purpose, and she said she would advise clients to do so. “But even more importantly, I would advise my clients to pay close attention to ESG factors that may impact their companies’ bottom line in the long run. Why? Because your employees care, because your customers care, and because your shareholders care, and not caring will affect your earnings.”

Voices in Sustainability: Interview with Susan (Suz) Mac Cormac

ClientSmart interviewed Morrison & Foerster’s Suz Mac Cormac, chair of the firm’s Social Enterprise and Impact Investing and Energy practices, about the Busines

Voices in Sustainability: Interview with Susan (Suz) Mac Cormac

Morrison & Foerster partner Suz Mac Cormac co-authored an article with PG&E’s Brian Wong for <a href="https://media2.mofo.com/v3/assets/blt5775cc69c999c255/bltbb003949ef99f87b/627311d14886af2aa2be0f44/191101-climate-is-changing.pdf" target="_self" rel="noopener noreferrer" dir="ltr">ACC Docket</a>, a publication by the Association of Corporate Counsel, that covers how climate change impacts companies and how board members should address the related risks and issues.“Ignoring the impact of climate change on business in the long term and the short term is at best irresponsible, and at worst could deal a significant blow to the company and its shareholders,” write the authors, who suggest that board members and in-house counsel should “consider changes in climate as they provide guidance and exercise their oversight function over management.”“There is no ‘best-in-class’ solution for all boards to adopt in considering climate risk as part of their oversight function,” according to the authors, who then offer some leading practices on private governance as advice, noting that impact analysis, board governance structure, board education, management accountability, and transparency are key in preparing companies for change over the coming months and years.

Susan (Suz) Mac Cormac, San Francisco partner, has extensive experience in corporate law, ESG, social enterprise and impact investing, and venture capital.

Susan H. Mac Cormac | Corporate + ESG Attorney

The Climate is Changing: What Every Board Member Needs to Know

Morrison & Foerster partner Suz Mac Cormac co-authored an article with PG&E’s Brian Wong for ACC Docket, a publication by the Association of Corporate Counsel, 

The Climate is Changing: What Every Board Member Needs to Know

<ul><li>Significant commitments, partnerships, and new research projects worth trillions were announced during <a href="https://www.greenbiz.com/article/climate-week-2019-huge-commitments-big-money-and-collaboration" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Climate Week 2019</a>.</li><li>The United Nations Global Compact and Accenture released findings from their <a href="https://www.accenture.com/us-en/insights/strategy/ungcceostudy?c=acn_glb_purposemediarelations_11036293&n=mrl_0919" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">CEO study on sustainability</a>, which draws on insights from more than 1,000 CEOs.</li><li>Caltech announced a <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/caltech-gets-750m-pledge-for-sustainability-climate-research-11569509701" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">$750 million donation</a> aimed at scaling research on environmental sustainability and climate research.</li><li>A new study by Invesco reveals that socially responsible investing is catching on among <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-swf-markets-environment/socially-responsible-investing-catching-on-among-sovereign-funds-study-idUSKBN1WF1DJ" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">sovereign investors</a>.</li><li>LeapFrog Investments became the first impact investor to globally announce the results of an independent audit against the Operating Principles for Impact Management.</li><li>As alternative proteins gain momentum, <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/lanabandoim/2019/09/27/vegan-tuna-provides-an-ocean-sustainability-solution/#6ddaf2c88334" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">TUNO</a>, a plant-based alternative to tuna, seeks to disrupt the $120 billion seafood industry with a sustainable solution.</li><li>Several leading Japanese brands battle <a href="https://asia.nikkei.com/Spotlight/Environment/Japan-battles-food-waste-in-production-with-AI-and-weather-data">food waste</a> in production using artificial intelligence and weather data.</li><li>The booming resale business could lead the future of <a href="https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/2019/09/8356152/resale-sustainable-market" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">sustainable fashion</a>.</li></ul>

Impact Links: Climate Week 2019 Announcements; UN Global Compact and Accenture Releases CEO Study on Sustainability; Caltech $750 Million Donation to Environmental Research; Invesco Study on Socially Responsible Investing; LeapFrog Reveals Independent Audit Results; Alternative Proteins Seek to Disrupt Seafood Industry; AI and Weather Data Are Helping Brands Battle Food Waste; The Future of Sustainable Fashion

Impact Links: Climate Week 2019 Announcements; UN Global Compact and Accenture Releases CEO Study on Sustainability; Caltech $750 Million Donation to Environmental Research; Invesco Study on Socially Responsible Investing; LeapFrog Reveals Independe

Significant commitments, partnerships, and new research projects worth trillions were announced during Climate Week 2019. The United Nations Global Compact and 

Impact Links: Climate Week 2019 Announcements; UN Global Compact and Accenture Releases CEO Study on Sustainability; Caltech $750 Million Donation to Environmental Research; Invesco Study on Socially Responsible Investing; LeapFrog Reveals Independe

MoFo Impact’s Suz Mac Cormac spoke on a panel at Climate Week NYC 2019 covering “Facilitating Investments Towards a 1.5˚C Future: How Can Companies Harness Investment Opportunities and Leverage Portfolios for a Net-Zero Future?” The panel covered investment strategies needed to ensure a sustainable and equitable path to net-zero emissions is delivered at an accelerated pace and explored how companies can align retirement options with their sustainability strategies to achieve greater impact and remain both resilient and attractive employers for future generations.MoFo proudly sponsored Climate Week NYC 2019, a gathering of businesses, governments, academic institutions, arts organizations, individuals, and nonprofit organizations to showcase amazing climate action and discuss how to do more.Watch the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wsv8vfS2wVY" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">panel discussion</a>.

Suz Mac Cormac Speaks at Climate Week NYC 2019

MoFo Impact’s Suz Mac Cormac spoke on a panel at Climate Week NYC 2019 covering “Facilitating Investments Towards a 1.5˚C Future: How Can Companies Harness Inve

Suz Mac Cormac Speaks at Climate Week NYC 2019

The MoFo Impact team recently published two articles in the Daily Journal on legal forms for social enterprises. The first article, “<a rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_self" href="https://media2.mofo.com/v3/assets/blt5775cc69c999c255/blt4a6826508cbc83c0/6273ef265f7b601eaaebeabf/190720-corporate-structure-for-impact.pdf" dir="ltr">Leveraging Corporate Structure for Impact</a>,” summarizes the different forms that entrepreneurs and investors alike should consider to help save our planet and improve the lives of the people on it. In “<a rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_self" href="https://media2.mofo.com/v3/assets/blt5775cc69c999c255/blted48979b91062134/6273ef2723c6cf2a1c3b0e54/190815-your-social-enterprises-legal-form.pdf">10 Considerations for Your Social Enterprise’s Legal Form</a>,” we explain how to find the right organizational structure for a social enterprise to maximize its business opportunities and impact goals.

MoFo Impact Publishes Guides on Social Enterprise Corporate Form

The MoFo Impact team recently published two articles in the Daily Journal on legal forms for social enterprises. The first article, “Leveraging Corporate Struct

MoFo Impact Publishes Guides on Social Enterprise Corporate Form

Members of the MoFo Impact team contributed two chapters in <a rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" href="https://www.americanbar.org/products/inv/book/383401893/">The Lawyer’s Corporate Social Responsibility Deskbook: Practical Guidance for Corporate Counsel and Law Firms</a>, published by the American Bar Association. This new guide is a comprehensive resource for in-house and outside counsel to help their companies, firms, and clients develop effective corporate social responsibility programs. Susan Mac Cormac, Jesse Finfrock, and Benjamin Fox authored the chapters on impact investing and alternative legal structures, covering the following:Impact Investing<ul><li>Impact investment instruments <ul><li>Convertible debt</li><li>Preferred equity</li><li>SAFEs</li><li>Bonds</li></ul></li><li>Impact investor structures <ul><li>For-profit funds designed to promote impact</li><li>Foundations</li><li>Hybrid funds</li></ul></li><li>Impact measurement and reporting <ul><li>ESG factors for existing public companies</li><li>Integrated reporting</li><li>New corporate forms</li><li>New Delaware statutes</li></ul></li></ul>Alternative Legal Structures<ul><li>Overview <ul><li>Understanding the Driving Forces behind the Proliferation of the New Corporate Forms</li><li>Marrying Nonprofits with For-Profits (Hybrid or Tandem Structures)</li><li>Overview of the New Types of Alternative Legal Entities – L3C, SPC/PBC, Benefit Corporations, Benefit LLCs</li></ul></li><li>Hybrid (tandem) entities <ul><li>Benefits of hybrid structures</li><li>Legal and practical issues with hybrid structures</li><li>General requirements and best practices for hybrid structures</li><li>Hybrid fund structures</li></ul></li><li>For-profit entities <ul><li>Benefit corporation, including certain state differences</li></ul></li></ul>For more information, see the full table of contents or <a rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" href="https://www.americanbar.org/products/inv/book/383401893/">order a copy of the deskbook</a>.

Benjamin Fox is a partner in the firm’s San Francisco office and a member of the firm’s Social Enterprise and Impact Investing Group. Benjamin’s practice focuses on the representation of clients in corporate and transactional matters, with a focus on investors and companies dedicated to pursuing social or environmental goals alongside financial returns.

MoFo Impact Published in ABA Corporate Social Responsibility Deskbook

Members of the MoFo Impact team contributed two chapters in The Lawyer’s Corporate Social Responsibility Deskbook: Practical Guidance for Corporate Counsel and 

MoFo Impact Published in ABA Corporate Social Responsibility Deskbook

<ul><li>As food waste becomes a major global problem, <a rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" href="https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/08/business/food-waste-climate-change.html">grocery stores now offer “happy hours</a>” as a solution.</li><li><a rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" href="https://www.dezeen.com/2019/09/04/lena-pripp-kovac-ikea-circular-interview/">IKEA’s sustainability chief</a> describes the company’s progress in becoming a circular business by 2030.</li><li>The World Bank explains how data and artificial intelligence will change the education landscape.</li><li>Clean energy has reached a <a rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" href="https://www.fastcompany.com/90402331/its-now-cheaper-to-build-new-renewables-than-it-is-to-build-natural-gas-plants">tipping point</a>: it’s cheaper to build new renewables than it is to build natural gas plants.</li><li>How did San Francisco turn its waste problem into a <a rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" href="https://www.fastcompany.com/90402736/how-san-francisco-turned-its-waste-problem-into-a-climate-solution">climate solution</a>?</li><li><a rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" href="http://www.ethicalcorp.com/how-shells-offsetting-move-could-help-unlock-flood-finance-forests">Shell</a> is playing a big role in increasing global demand for forest offsets, investing $300 million in natural ecosystem projects.</li><li>The world’s largest responsible investor group is mounting a campaign to <a rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" href="https://www.marketwatch.com/story/sustainable-investor-group-representing-90-trillion-mobilizes-against-amazon-fires-2019-09-11">end the man-made fires</a> in the Amazon rainforest.</li><li>Sonoma County might be the most <a rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" href="https://www.sfchronicle.com/wine/article/Nearly-all-Sonoma-County-vineyards-are-certified-14432738.php">sustainable wine region in the world</a> and the region will pilot a new climate adaptation program in 2020.</li></ul>

Impact Links: Grocery Store “Happy Hours”; IKEA’s Progress in Becoming a Circular Business; The World Bank on AI in Education; The Tipping Point of Clean Energy; San Francisco’s Waste Problem Turned into Climate Solution; Shell’s Investment in Natural Ecosystem Projects; Investor Group Campaign for the Amazon; Sustainable Wine in Sonoma County

Impact Links: Grocery Store “Happy Hours”; IKEA’s Progress in Becoming a Circular Business; The World Bank on AI in Education; The Tipping Point of Clean Energy; San Francisco’s Waste Problem Turned into Climate Solution; Shell’s Investment in Natur


As food waste becomes a major global problem, grocery stores now offer “happy hours” as a solution.
IKEA’s sustainability chief describes the company’s progres

Impact Links: Grocery Store “Happy Hours”; IKEA’s Progress in Becoming a Circular Business; The World Bank on AI in Education; The Tipping Point of Clean Energy; San Francisco’s Waste Problem Turned into Climate Solution; Shell’s Investment in Natur

<ul><li>Insurance companies in California are <a href="https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-news/insurance-companies-bailing-on-california-because-of-wildfire-risk-874579/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">choosing not to renew homeowners’ policies</a> because of wildfire risk.</li><li>The KKR Global Impact Fund received a <a href="https://www.barrons.com/articles/ubs-invests-225m-in-kkr-global-impact-01567609886" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">$225 million investment from UBS</a>.</li><li>A <a href="https://www.wri.org/publication/reducing-food-loss-and-waste-setting-global-action-agenda">new report</a> by the World Resources Institute lays out a global action agenda to solve the world’s food loss and waste problem.</li><li>A Harvard professor explains how the Amazon fires could <a href="https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2019/08/harvard-biologist-discusses-the-environmental-impact-of-the-amazon-fires/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">speed climate change</a>.</li><li><a href="https://cen.acs.org/people/profiles/3Ms-chief-sustainability-officer-Gayle-Schueller/97/i33" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">3M’s chief sustainability officer</a> reveals how the company has integrated recycling and waste prevention into the production of its products.</li><li>Bill Gates explains why he’s backing companies that <a href="https://www.fastcompany.com/90396842/bill-gates-explains-why-hes-backing-companies-that-change-how-we-build" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">change how we produce materials</a>.</li><li>Nonprofit Conservation International launched a <a href="https://www.fastcompany.com/90396749/this-environmental-nonprofit-just-started-a-venture-fund-to-put-200-million-into-conservation-businesses" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">$200 million investment fund</a> focused on businesses and people growing economies while conserving natural areas.</li><li>Accion Venture Lab, the seed-stage investment arm of nonprofit Accion, raised $23 million for a new <a href="https://techcrunch.com/2019/09/03/accion-venture-lab-launches-23m-inclusive-fintech-startup-fund/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">inclusive fintech startup fund</a>.</li><li>Antoni Ballabriga, BBVA’s Global Head of Responsible Business and Co-Chair of the Global Steering Committee for the United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiative explains the <a href="https://www.bbva.com/en/younger-generations-are-already-demanding-solutions/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">need for sustainable finance</a>.</li></ul>

Impact Links: Homeowners Insurance Affected by Wildfire Risk; KKR Global Impact Fund New Investment; World Resources Institute Agenda to Solve Food Loss; Amazon Fires Speeding Up Climate Change; 3M’s Increasing Commitment to Recycling; Bill Gates on Why He is Backing Manufacturing Companies; Nonprofit Conservation International Launches $200M Investment Fund; Accion Venture Lab Raising for Inclusive Fintech Startup Fund; Antoni Ballabriga Explains the Need for Sustainable Finance

Impact Links: Homeowners Insurance Affected by Wildfire Risk; KKR Global Impact Fund New Investment; World Resources Institute Agenda to Solve Food Loss; Amazon Fires Speeding Up Climate Change; 3M’s Increasing Commitment to Recycling; Bill Gates on

Insurance companies in California are choosing not to renew homeowners’ policies because of wildfire risk. The KKR Global Impact Fund received a $225 million in

Impact Links: Homeowners Insurance Affected by Wildfire Risk; KKR Global Impact Fund New Investment; World Resources Institute Agenda to Solve Food Loss; Amazon Fires Speeding Up Climate Change; 3M’s Increasing Commitment to Recycling; Bill Gates on