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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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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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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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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Benjamin T.R. Fox

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California’s Assembly Bill (“AB”) 979 is set to make waves both within the state and across the country as a groundbreaking new law that would require companies to diversify their boards and reserve seats for directors from “underrepresented communities.” The bill defines a director from an “underrepresented community” as “an individual who self-identifies as Black, African American, Hispanic, Latino, Asian, Pacific Islander, Native American, Native Hawaiian, or Alaska Native, or who self-identifies as gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgender.” The bill, which the state legislature passed on August 30, 2020, would require all publicly held companies with headquarters in California to have a minimum ratio of members from underrepresented communities. If the governor signs the law, it will be the first of its kind in the United States, as no other law mandates representation from deemed underrepresented communities among company board seats.Read our <a href="https://www.mofo.com/resources/insights/200831-new-california-law.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">client alert</a>.

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Jackie engages in a general corporate and transactional practice, with special emphasis on corporate counseling of public companies, mergers and acquisitions, and the China practice. 

Jackie Liu

Jackie Liu | White Collar Defense + M&A Lawyer

Our corporate governance practice brings together top lawyers from our corporate, regulatory and investigations, risk management, white collar defense and compliance, and executive compensation practices.

Marrone Bio Innovations' Acquisition by Bioceres Crop Solutions Corp

Temasek’s Joint Venture with Bayer

SoftBank Group and SoftBank Vision Fund’s Investment Transactions

Temasek's Investment in Verily Life Sciences and Agtech Space

Intel's Investment in Cloudera

Visa's Strategic Investments in the Fintech Space

Marrone Bio Innovations’ Public Offerings

Ekso Bionics Holdings, Inc.’s Stock and Warrant Financings

Temasek's Investment in Coherus, Inc.

Catalyst Biosciences, Inc. IPO/Reverse Merger and Public Offerings

RH's Public Offerings

InvenSense's Public Offerings

At-the-Market Programs

Marrone Bio Innovation’s Acquisition of Pro Farm and Jet-Ag

SoftBank's Acquisition of Sprint

Novellus' Merger with Lam Research

Shutterfly's Acquisition of Tiny Prints

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.

New California Law to Require Representation from “Underrepresented Communities” on Boards of Public Companies Headquartered in California

California’s Assembly Bill (“AB”) 979 is set to make waves both within the state and across the country as a groundbreaking new law that would require companies

New California Law to Require Representation from “Underrepresented Communities” on Boards of Public Companies Headquartered in California

In 2013, Delaware passed legislation adopting a new corporate form, the public benefit corporation (PBC), with a view to allowing directors of for-profit corporations to take actions not just in pursuit of stockholder returns, but also with the “[intent] to produce a public benefit or benefits and to operate in a responsible and sustainable manner.” Over the past few years, thousands of social ventures, as well as more traditional companies, have incorporated as PBCs, with PBCs reportedly having raised $2.5 billion from 2013 to 2019. This is in part due to decisions made by the non-profit B Lab, which required that Delaware corporations paying for the license to use its “B Corporation” mark adopt the PBC or other benefit corporation form to maintain their status. It is also due to a rise in “impact” investing in the private markets and an emphasis by prominent institutional investors such as BlackRock on sustainable, long-term investment and growth and environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors. During that time, however, only one PBC went public and listed on a national securities exchange.Read our <a href="https://www.mofo.com/resources/insights/200903-novel-corporate-form.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">client alert</a>.

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

Capital Markets Embrace a Novel Corporate Form

In 2013, Delaware passed legislation adopting a new corporate form, the public benefit corporation (PBC), with a view to allowing directors of for-profit corpor

Capital Markets Embrace a Novel Corporate Form

When California became the first state to go into COVID-19-related lockdown in late March, Morrison & Foerster San Francisco-based corporate partner Susan (Suz) Mac Cormac was alarmed by what she knew would be a devastating impact on the state’s small businesses. Her concern was compounded by the fact that, while government relief programs were enacted, they might not be reaching the businesses that needed it the most.Read the full <a href="https://together.mofo.com/pro-bono/mofos-spearheads-california-task-force-to-save-small-businesses/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">blog post</a>.

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Michael Santos is an associate in the San Francisco office of Morrison Foerster and a member of the firm’s Transactions Department. Michael is a member of the firm’s Social Enterprise and Impact Investing Group.

Michael P. Santos

Michael Santos

MoFo Spearheads California Task Force to Save Small Businesses

When California became the first state to go into COVID-19-related lockdown in late March, Morrison & Foerster San Francisco-based corporate partner Susan (Suz)

MoFo Spearheads California Task Force to Save Small Businesses

For the second time in a little over a decade, the United States is facing an economic crisis on a near-unprecedented scale, while simultaneously battling the worst pandemic in over a century. To date, over 80,000 people have died in the United States from COVID-19, and more than 33 million Americans have filed for unemployment benefits since the beginning of the shutdowns across the country. The impact of COVID-19 on the human and economic well-being of Americans and people across the world will undoubtedly leave few, if any, unburdened in its wake.However, the data is revealing that low-income communities and communities of color are disproportionately impacted by infections and fatalities<a href="#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1">[1]</a> and also stand to suffer the most from the economic fallout.<a href="#_ftn2" name="_ftnref2">[2]</a> As recovery efforts progress, it is not only critical that the needs of these communities are brought to the forefront due to the disparate economic impact they are likely to face, but also that alternative forms of support and investment are considered in order to build a more equitable economy.As with prior crises, Americans look to the government and philanthropy for aid to meet their basic needs of survival. However, funding under certain federal programs has already been depleted, and less than 20% of the CARES Act was apportioned for small businesses.<a href="#_ftn3" name="_ftnref3">[3]</a> Additionally, a report by the Center for Responsible Lending estimates that “upwards of 90% of businesses owned by people of color have been, or will likely be, shut out of the Paycheck Protection Program.”<a href="#_ftn4" name="_ftnref4">[4]</a> Nonprofits, while receiving an influx of donations, are stretched thin due to increasing demand for their services on already-limited budgets, and, if 2008 is any indicator, charitable-giving will likely decrease as we enter a recession.<a href="#_ftn5" name="_ftnref5">[5]</a> While the government and philanthropy are the primary sources of relief, it is necessary to ask what role the private sector can and should play, both in the immediate crisis and in the long-term.In August 2019, a group of nearly 200 chief executives from various companies, including several Fortune 500 companies, asked a similar question on the role of corporations. The group issued a statement arguing that the role of corporations should be redefined from solely maximizing shareholder value to also “invest[ing] in their employees, protect[ing] the environment and deal[ing] fairly and ethically with their suppliers.”<a href="#_ftn6" name="_ftnref6">[6]</a> The New York Times noted that until “investors start measuring companies by their social impact instead of their quarterly returns, systemic change may prove elusive.”<a href="#_ftn7" name="_ftnref7">[7]</a>In response to this challenge, some groups focused on impact investing—investments made with the intention to generate positive, measurable social and environmental impact alongside a financial return—are pioneering an innovative approach called restorative investing. Restorative investing, based in part on the principles of restorative economics, seeks to address systemic injustices that extract from and penalize communities of color, the poor, and the working class by making investments that “generate community wealth, produce governance structures that benefit the whole, and build community power.”<a href="#_ftn8" name="_ftnref8">[8]</a>An example of restorative investing in action is the Boston Impact Initiative (BII), a place‑based impact investment fund that is committed to investing in communities that have been impacted by racial, social, and economic inequality. The Ujima Fund is another Boston-based economic development and community-organizing collective that is co-designed, governed by, and grounded in working-class communities of color. BII, the Ujima Fund, and other restorative investing approaches are building on the following principles developed by the nonprofit, Transform Finance: (i) engaging communities in design, governance, and ownership, (ii) adding more value than you extract, and (iii) fairly balancing risk and return among investors, entrepreneurs, and communities.<a href="#_ftn9" name="_ftnref9">[9]</a>These principles highlight that, while investing capital in underserved communities is important, equity is also about power and that too often impact-investing initiatives fail to include the beneficiaries who may better understand the problem and potential solution.<a href="#_ftn10" name="_ftnref10">[10]</a> As Rodney Foxworth, CEO of Common Future, emphasizes, restorative investing recognizes “the urgent moral, economic, and ecological imperative to share and redirect power and promote collective well-being and social equity,” and such urgency will only be heightened by the current crisis.<a href="#_ftn11" name="_ftnref11">[11]</a>Coming out of the 2008 recession, wealth inequality grew along racial and ethnic lines,<a href="#_ftn12" name="_ftnref12">[12]</a> and, in 2016, wealth inequality between upper-income families and lower and middle-income families reached the highest levels recorded.<a href="#_ftn13" name="_ftnref13">[13]</a> A similar outcome stemming from this financial crisis threatens a potentially untenable environment, which is why some companies and investors are looking to promote a new approach to impact investing. If ever there was a need to strengthen and support our local economies, specifically communities of color, now is the time in order to avoid the recovery disparities of the 2008 recession and to support a more equitable economy.<a href="#_ftnref1" name="_ftn1">[1]</a> <a href="https://time.com/5821212/coronavirus-low-income-communities/">https://time.com/5821212/coronavirus-low-income-communities/</a>.<a href="#_ftnref2" name="_ftn2">[2]</a> <a href="https://www.brookings.edu/blog/the-avenue/2020/04/08/coronavirus-economic-relief-cannot-neglect-black-owned-business/">https://www.brookings.edu/blog/the-avenue/2020/04/08/coronavirus-economic-relief-cannot-neglect-black-owned-business/</a>.<a href="#_ftnref3" name="_ftn3">[3]</a> <a href="https://www.npr.org/2020/03/26/821457551/whats-inside-the-senate-s-2-trillion-coronavirus-aid-package">https://www.npr.org/2020/03/26/821457551/whats-inside-the-senate-s-2-trillion-coronavirus-aid-package</a>.<a href="#_ftnref4" name="_ftn4">[4]</a> <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/women-minority-business-owners-paycheck-protection-program-loans/">https://www.cbsnews.com/news/women-minority-business-owners-paycheck-protection-program-loans/</a>.<a href="#_ftnref5" name="_ftn5">[5]</a> Rob Reich, Just Giving: Why Philanthropy Is Failing Democracy and How It Can Do Better (Princeton University Press, 2018), 72.<a href="#_ftnref6" name="_ftn6">[6]</a> <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2019/08/19/business/business-roundtable-ceos-corporations.html">https://www.nytimes.com/2019/08/19/business/business-roundtable-ceos-corporations.html</a>.<a href="#_ftnref7" name="_ftn7">[7]</a> Id.<a href="#_ftnref8" name="_ftn8">[8]</a> <a href="https://www.nwamakaagbo.com/restorative-economics">https://www.nwamakaagbo.com/restorative-economics</a>.<a href="#_ftnref9" name="_ftn9">[9]</a> Morgan Simon, Real Impact: The New Economics of Social Change (Bold Type Books, 2017), 98.<a href="#_ftnref10" name="_ftn10">[10]</a> Anand Giridharadas, Winners Take All: The Elite Charade of Changing the World (Dell, 2018), 151–152.<a href="#_ftnref11" name="_ftn11">[11]</a> <a href="https://missioninvestors.org/resources/impact-investing-can-fight-racism-and-wealth-gaps-if-conducted-new-ways">https://missioninvestors.org/resources/impact-investing-can-fight-racism-and-wealth-gaps-if-conducted-new-ways</a>.<a href="#_ftnref12" name="_ftn12">[12]</a> <a href="https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2014/12/12/racial-wealth-gaps-great-recession/">https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2014/12/12/racial-wealth-gaps-great-recession/</a>.<a href="#_ftnref13" name="_ftn13">[13]</a> <a href="https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2017/11/01/how-wealth-inequality-has-changed-in-the-u-s-since-the-great-recession-by-race-ethnicity-and-income/">https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2017/11/01/how-wealth-inequality-has-changed-in-the-u-s-since-the-great-recession-by-race-ethnicity-and-income/</a>.

Restorative Investing: How the Impact Investing Model Could Be Used to Support Vulnerable Communities in the Time of COVID-19

For the second time in a little over a decade, the United States is facing an economic crisis on a near-unprecedented scale, while simultaneously battling the w

Restorative Investing: How the Impact Investing Model Could Be Used to Support Vulnerable Communities in the Time of COVID-19

Suz Mac Cormac was a guest speaker on The Americans podcast with Chelsea Spieker, titled “How Can New Corporate Form Help Save the Planet?” The episode provides a brief update on COVID-19 around the world, followed by a discussion with Suz on impact investing and the positive role that it can play in our world today and during this crisis.Listen to the full episode <a href="https://the-americans.com/24-susan-mac-cormac/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">here</a>.

The Americans Podcast: How Can New Corporate Form Help Save the Planet?

Suz Mac Cormac was a guest speaker on The Americans podcast with Chelsea Spieker, titled “How Can New Corporate Form Help Save the Planet?” The episode provides

The Americans Podcast: How Can New Corporate Form Help Save the Planet?

Suz Mac Cormac spoke to the Daily Journal for an article featuring the Bay Area Small/Social Enterprise Task Force (BASE Force), which is a group led by Morrison & Foerster with other legal, financial, and nonprofit professionals who are guiding small businesses through emergency resources. The task force is focused on collecting local, state, federal, and private/nonprofit resources for Bay Area small businesses impacted by COVID-19 and disseminating this information in a digestible way as quickly as possible.“The current estimate is 30% of the small businesses in the Bay Area will not be there by this summer if we don’t help them,” said Suz, who is chair of the firm’s Social Enterprise + Impact Investing Group and is leading the firm’s efforts on the task force. She added that with BASE Force, “We want to give the same level of advice we are giving to the large, well-funded venture and private equity backed companies.”The task force is looking for more attorneys and law firms to provide support. The need, Suz said, is staggering."I don't know how to explain this to people if you don't see it -- it is as big as climate change," she said of the number of struggling business owners in the Bay Area. "We have to get the word out because it's going to be real. It's going to be awful."

Lawyers Helping Small Businesses Navigating CARES Act Funding Requirements

Suz Mac Cormac and Kaela Colwell spoke to the Daily Journal for an article featuring the Bay Area Small/Social Enterprise Task Force (BASE Force), which is a gr

Lawyers Helping Small Businesses Navigating CARES Act Funding Requirements

As members of the Bay Area Social/Small Enterprise Task Force (BASE Force), Morrison & Foerster attorneys Suz Mac Cormac, Alfredo Silva, Kaela Colwell, Olga Terets, and Michael Santos have compiled a resource guide for Bay Area small businesses impacted by COVID-19. BASE Force is focused on collecting local, state, federal and private/nonprofit resources for Bay Area small businesses impacted by COVID-19 and disseminating this information in a digestible way. In addition, the task force plans to host webinars and provide small businesses with access to live support from lawyers and financial professionals (office hours, trainings, clinics, etc.) in the coming weeks.<a href="https://www.law.berkeley.edu/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/200408-bay-area-guide-for-covid-19.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Read the BASE Force Guide to COVID-19 Resources and Relief guide</a>.

Bay Area Small/Social Enterprise Task Force: Guide To COVID-19 Resources And Relief

As members of the Bay Area Social/Small Enterprise Task Force (BASE Force), Morrison & Foerster attorneys Suz Mac Cormac, Alfredo Silva, Kaela Colwell, Olga Ter

Bay Area Small/Social Enterprise Task Force: Guide To COVID-19 Resources And Relief

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