Written By Will Osler and Valeria Palacio
The Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA) has announced a pause to its work on developing new mandatory climate-related disclosures and amending diversity-related disclosure requirements, in light of recent significant shifts in the global economic and geopolitical landscape.
In determining to pause its work on disclosure requirements around climate change and diversity, the CSA has acknowledged that existing securities legislation already requires issuers to disclose material climate-related risks affecting their business. Issuers are encouraged to refer to the sustainability standards issued by the Canadian Sustainability Standards Board in December 2024, which serve as a voluntary disclosure framework for preparing sustainability and climate-related disclosures.
With respect to diversity-related disclosure, TSX-listed issuers are still required to provide disclosure regarding representation of women on their boards and in executive officer positions in accordance with National Instrument 58-101 – Disclosure of Corporate Governance Practices.
The CSA aims to revisit the climate- and diversity-related disclosure projects in future years to finalize requirements for issuers. As market trends evolve, the CSA will continue to monitor disclosure practices of issuers to address any misleading disclosures as well as provide information and additional guidance as appropriate.
The pause was announced alongside new incremental measures—implemented through coordinated blanket orders that took effect on April 17, 2025—aimed at reducing regulatory burden for reporting issuers, increasing access to capital markets, and enhancing the competitiveness, efficiency and resiliency of Canadian markets. For further details on these measures, please see our recent blog post Canadian Securities Regulators Take Further Incremental Steps to Promote Access to Capital Markets.
If you have any questions, please contact a member of the Bennett Jones Capital Markets group.
Please note that this publication presents an overview of notable legal trends and related updates. It is intended for informational purposes and not as a replacement for detailed legal advice. If you need guidance tailored to your specific circumstances, please contact one of the authors to explore how we can help you navigate your legal needs.
For permission to republish this or any other publication, contact Amrita Kochhar at kochhara@bennettjones.com.
Bennett Jones