# Carbon accounting made for **legal firms**

Tap into fully transparent, auditable carbon accounting and expert guidance from GHG-Protocol-certified advisors to position your firm as the trusted partner for corporate business.

## Give your firm a **competitive edge**

Legal firms face a dual challenge when it comes to sustainability. Not only do they need to manage their own environmental impact, their clients also expect them to advise on the latest ESG regulation and how to safeguard against greenwashing.

To remain competitive, firms need to be able to navigate a rapidly evolving regulatory environment to guide the businesses they work with through the latest requirements of regulation such as the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) or Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD). Members of [The Legal Sustainability Alliance](https://legalsustainabilityalliance.com/2025/01/06/tracking-sustainability-trends-in-2025/) also expect firms will need to consult clients on green finance issues such as structuring green bonds, sustainability-linked loans and navigating ESG-related financing requirements. This competitive edge extends to legal businesses having their own house in order.

To even be included in a tender process for many large businesses, firms have to fulfil certain ESG criteria. And to maintain clients, they must satisfy clients’ supply chain reporting needs. At the heart of meeting these requirements, and protecting against greenwashing claims, is comprehensive, auditable carbon accounting. Being able to report on carbon emissions with confidence is no longer just a compliance play for legal firms, it’s a key factor in retaining existing clients and winning new business.

## In numbers: legal firms’ carbon accounting challenge

Regardless of how regulatory requirements evolve, a significant proportion of businesses expect legal firms to be able to provide comprehensive reporting on their carbon emissions if they are to consider working with them. Here’s the proof:

- **78%** of corporates have sustainability criteria in procurement process for legal services  
  _[Legal Sustainability Alliance Guide to Sustainable Procurement](https://legalsustainabilityalliance.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/LSA-GUIDE-TO-SUSTAINABLE-PROCUREMENT-1.pdf)_
- **77%** of Top 100 firms have set GHG emissions targets  
  _[2024 Law Firms’ Survey, PwC](https://image.uk.info.pwc.com/lib/fe31117075640475701c74/m/1/Law+Firms+Survey+2024_FINAL+version.pdf)_
- **49%** of the Top 50 UK legal firms have a well-developed ESG policy  
  _[2024 Law Firms’ Survey – ESG progress and sustainability reporting, PwC](https://www.pwc.co.uk/industries/legal-professional-business-support-services/law-firms-survey/transcript-2024-esg-mark-anderson.html)_

## How Normative’s **carbon accounting delivers** for legal firms

Corporates look to their legal partners for trustworthy guidance on key issues affecting their business. When they need advice on ESG, being able to deliver accurate, credible answers is critical for any law firm’s reputation, relevance in the market, and ability to win new business. Here’s how Normative can make that a reality.

- ### Meet tender requirements
  
  Build an accurate carbon baseline through Normative’s system of record for carbon data. Collect activity, supplier and product-specific data – not just spend data – to stay competitive while reducing emissions and work with a team that has a 100% audit pass rate with firms like KPMG.

- ### Avoid greenwashing
  
  Ensure your data is accurate, credible and fully transparent. Normative provides 349,000 emissions factors across 18 databases, updated every 6 months.

- ### Stay on top of regulation
  
  Work with our team of GHG-Protocol-certified Climate Strategy Advisors who have delivered a 100% success rate on SBTi submissions and can guide your firm through the latest regulatory requirements.

- ### Meet SBTi targets and customer expectations
  
  Build credible carbon emissions reports with ease and work towards SBTi targets to meet your clients’ reporting requirements and contribute towards a reduction in their supply chain emissions.

## What’s the **ROI** of carbon accounting?

Take 5 minutes out to read this whitepaper and uncover how your legal firm could use carbon accounting to:

- Make money  
- Save money  
- Mitigate risk

## **Carbon insights** to empower decarbonization and mitigate greenwashing

- Comprehensive carbon calculation  
- Expert support  
- Audit and compliance-ready