b'GOVERNANCE| LEGAL SECTOR| 2022SUSTAINABILITY INSIGHTSUSTAINABILITY REPORTING Forty-one per cent of firms provided additional sustainability reporting during the year, and a further 2 per cent were preparing to do so. This reporting is generally collected, communicated and published by the firms themselves. The most common additional reporting has been ESG reporting followed by the Carbon Disclosure Project reporting, which is an increasing requirement of many listed law clients. This is likely to reflect the increasing demands from customers for sustainability information and the maturity of the firms sustainability programs and data collection. Additional reporting undertaken for external programs this year includes reporting Climate Active, Modern Slavery Statements, the UN Global Compact and the NSW Sustainability Advantage program.Challenges and Opportunities It is becoming more and more important to be able to justify and demonstrate a law firms sustainability commitments. The rapid rise of sustainability information being sought by law firm customers provides a significant challenge to internal systems that are not prepared to capture and report this information consistently, flexibly or efficiently. The sources of required information is spread across the functions of the firm which requires a greater emphasis on the importance of this information for planning and reporting processes.In addition to the interest in this information, there is also growing attention being paid to the rigour of sustainability information. Organisations, their management and boards are being held to account by shareholders, investors and regulators with higher scrutiny being applied to both the accuracy of reporting and also the adequacy of reporting. AusLSAs voluntary report is designed to allow a common approach to reporting that is appropriate to a wide range of different firm types and sizes. This approach sometimes constrains the level of detail and depth that can be provided across all the areas covered. AusLSA members should use this report as a basis for the expanded collection and reporting of information in the different sustainability programs and initiatives undertaken. This provides an additional depth of information that is tailored to the specific priorities of firms and their audiences.Some firms already choose to do this by developing standalone Environmental Social Governance style reports, but increased information is also often incorporated throughout relevant sections of their own website.AusLSA member law firms have increased the scope, depth and communication of their sustainability reporting through the AusLSA annual Sustainability Insight over the last four years. The AusLSA report is carefully compiled and designed to suit a diverse audience of stakeholders. However, only half of the member firms have taken advantage of this by publicly promoting sustainability commitments and performance. All firms have their own communications, including promotions on their websites or communications with customers or employees that would effectively raise the profile of their sustainability commitments. Celebrating this information in the public sphere will help reinforce the value of compiling their reports and increase the benefits of their public sustainability reporting.78'