ACCR to appeal Federal Court judgment

The Australasian Centre for Corporate Responsibility (ACCR) has appealed the decision of Justice Markovic in the case of ACCR v Santos Ltd.

In 2021, ACCR commenced landmark proceedings in the Federal Court alleging that Santos Ltd breached provisions of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) and the Australian Consumer Law by engaging in misleading or deceptive conduct relating to representations in its 2020 Annual Report, 2020 Investor Day Briefing and 2021 Climate Change Report.

Last month the Federal Court dismissed those claims.

Commenting on ACCR’s decision to appeal, Brynn O’Brien, Co-CEO of ACCR said:

“This case concerns fundamental legal standards that apply to all businesses in Australia responding to climate change, and which are central to the integrity of market disclosures. The legal issues raised in the judgment warrant clarification by an appellate court.

“In our view, the judgment sets the bar for corporate communication about climate commitments well below market and investor expectations. We think it increases the burden on investors to interrogate the full context in which claims are made, and the assumptions, uncertainties, and emerging technologies that may underpin them.

“Businesses doing hard, evidence-driven work in the energy transition need clear guidance on the standards governing climate disclosures.

“ACCR has engaged the specialist corporate and consumer law team at Webb Henderson on appeal, and will continue to be represented by our counsel team Noel Hutley SC, Sebastian Hartford-Davis, Jerome Entwisle and Zoe Bush. We thank the Environmental Defenders Office (EDO) for their professionalism, dedication and effort in the case at first instance.”

Background

Court file access: To request a copy of the Notice of Appeal please contact the NSW Registry of the Federal Court by email at nswreg@fedcourt.gov.au or by phone on 1300 720 980, providing the proceeding reference (Matter No NSD414/2026 ACCR v Santos Ltd) and follow the Registry’s instructions.