Impact Leaders: Maurits Dolmans & Georgina Beasley

When we think of climate action, the legal profession isn’t always the first place that comes to mind. Yet the way laws are written, interpreted and applied can unlock—or block—systemic change.

In this edition of our Impact Leaders series, I spoke with two people pushing law firmly into the climate conversation: Maurits Dolmans, Senior Counsel at Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton and Special Legal Advisor to the UNEP-Finance Initiative, and Georgina Beasley, CEO of the Net Zero Lawyers Alliance (NZLA).

Maurits has become one of Europe’s leading lawyers on Sustainability, net zero and competition law. He speaks on his own behalf. Georgina brings global policy experience from New Zealand and the UN climate negotiations, and now leads NZLA’s mission to align legal services with the transition.

Together, they’re shaping how fiduciary duties, antitrust policy and the legal profession itself can accelerate climate action.

Follow Maurits here and Georgina here.

Personal Journeys into Climate and Law

Toby: Maurits, you’ve had a long and distinguished career in competition law. When did climate and sustainability start to become central to your work, and what triggered that shift?

Maurits: I’ve always been interested in these issues, but my practice was mainly in technology, media and innovation. Around 2017, I started thinking seriously about climate and antitrust. Competition drives people to exploit and exhaust natural resources - the air, the earth, the water - without accounting for the costs. That’s a market failure, because the damage from pollution, biodiversity loss and climate change isn’t included in the price of goods and services.

At a Brussels competition conference a small group of us were asked to speak on a topic no one else had covered. I chose climate change. I explained that market failures like this can be addressed through regulation, taxation or cooperation. Regulation and taxation are often slow and politically difficult—so cooperation may help. If one company acts alone, they may fear they lose competitiveness. They can only create economies of scale if everyone moves together. That’s the collective action problem at the heart of climate change. A prisoners’ dilemma.

That thinking (and that of others such as Martijn Snoep and Simon Holmes) sparked wider discussions with the European Commission, the UK Competition and Markets Authority, economists and lawyers. Authorities began to recognise that when competitors cooperate to solve climate challenges, antitrust law should enable - not block - that collaboration.  We now have guidance on that in the EU, UK and elsewhere.

Toby: Georgina, you began your career in New Zealand as an environmental lawyer and climate negotiator. What drew you into this work?

Georgina: I started briefly in private practice before moving into government. First I worked on domestic climate strategy, then joined New Zealand’s UNFCCC negotiating team. Later I became Private Secretary for Climate Change - first to a conservative Deputy Prime Minister, then to the Green Party’s co-leader.

Those two roles were very different. Under the conservative government, climate was not necessarily a prioritised portfolio.  Under the Greens, climate was a top priority, with the Net Zero Bill being one of the Government’s  first 100 day deliverables. This role taught me about effective climate communications, and how to ensure evidence-based advice lands across the political divide. 

Joining NZLA brought my two worlds together - law and climate. Too often people think “climate law” just means litigation. But legal advice wraps around every part of our society and economy. If all lawyers were to understand climate risks and opportunities, and how their practice impacts the transition, the results could be truly transformational.

(At this point Georgina’s young son joins briefly on screen. Maurits smiles and says: “That’s the generation we do this for.” It was a great reminder of the human stakes behind the legal arguments.)

Law, Climate & Market Failures

Toby: Maurits, you described climate change as a “climate prisoner’s dilemma.” How do you explain that idea to business leaders who don’t have a legal background?

Maurits: It’s common sense. If one company wants to clean up its act, it worries that another will continue polluting, and take its market share, while society sees no benefit. So no one acts, even if everyone knows they must in their own and their customers’ best interest. That’s the prisoner’s dilemma.

To solve it, you need coordination - through regulation, taxation, or cooperation. We’ve seen this in practice: alliances like the Net Zero Insurance Alliance and Net Zero Banking Alliance tried to coordinate action across finance. Antitrust in the EU, UK, and elsewhere allows this.  But in the US, antitrust pushback has been fierce for political reasons. Authorities there have argued that antitrust law should drive “hard competition,” even if that means exploiting natural resources or causes longer-term damage. That stance caused alliances to collapse or suspend their work.

If cooperation isn’t enough or is frustrated, what else? One answer is fiduciary duty. Pension funds, banks and insurers already have legal duties to act in the long-term interests of their beneficiaries. That should include not investing in new unabated oil and gas expansion, investing in the transition and climate innovation, advocating for effective climate policy, and actively stewarding companies through transition. Fiduciary duty is a legal basis for action that doesn’t rely on fragile voluntary cooperation.

Toby: What’s the most misunderstood aspect of competition law in relation to sustainability agreements?

Maurits: People think competition law is pure economics, free of politics. In reality, competition law has always reflected the big social issues of the day - from inflation in Roman times, and market access in the middle ages, to breaking up market power of trusts in 19th century America, post-war ordo-liberal focus on cartels and abuse of dominance that had contributed to dictatorships and WWII, and deregulation and dynamic competition through innovation in the 1980s.

Today, the defining issues are climate change, market concentration, rapid innovation and digitalization, and the decline of our political institutions. Competition law naturally evolves to address them. Addressing these items in part through competition law by recognizing and addressing market failures doesn’t necessarily mean competition policy is “polluted” by politics—it’s shaped by the context we live in. Climate is one of the great issues of our time, which affects everyone whether north or south, red or blue, and competition law has to reflect that – so long as we use a consistent and rational economic framework for analysis and avoid arbitrary decision-making and political corruption.

The Role of NZLA

Toby: Georgina, what do you see as NZLA’s most important contribution so far?

Georgina: Put really simply we’ve created a space to help mobilise commercial law firms and lawyers to understand their role in the net zero transition. It is becoming more widely understood that climate expertise is not just the right thing for a firm to do, but the smart thing to do.

Part of our operating model involves accelerator groups focused on different areas of law - competition, fiduciary duties, project finance, public international law  and more. The expertise of the membership are channelled into these groups to progress understanding of what net zero alignment looks like across these areas.

The Alliance is inclusive. Firms are at very different stages, but a member can contribute. They might focus on capacity building or climate pro bono, or manging climate risk or contributing to an advisory group concerned with a specific issue. It’s both competitive and collaborative and creates a generous environment where firms move faster.

Maurits: Ultimately, it’s about equipping lawyers to give advice that reflects reality. Climate change and nature loss create systemic risks. Ignoring them isn’t just unethical - it’s bad practice. NZLA helps lawyers integrate that understanding into their day-to-day work.

Georgina: Exactly. We often say: if you’re ignoring climate risks and opportunities, you’re not giving competent advice. It’s that simple.

Toby: How far does NZLA go into shaping culture inside law firms, beyond technical guidance?

Georgina: We try to meet firms where they are. We don’t wait until everyone’s at the same level. Different firms lead on different areas, and that’s a strength.

We also make it clear this isn’t just about compliance or ethics - it’s smart business. Firms that build strong climate governance will be better positioned to advise clients, attract talent, and seize opportunities. That cultural shift is what drives transformation.

Balancing Commercial Imperatives & Ethics

Toby: Many professionals struggle to balance commercial imperatives with personal ethics. How do you both approach that?

Georgina: For me, it’s about alignment. My personal passion for climate is now aligned with  my professional role. But even for lawyers in corporate firms, the reality is the same: ignoring climate isn’t just an ethical failure, it’s bad for clients. The law is catching up with that, and firms that lead will be better off.

Maurits: At Cleary we have a pro bono policy that allows lawyers to work on projects they support, as long as we avoid conflicts with client work. Beyond that, it’s about understanding fiduciary duty properly. The UK Companies Act requires boards to consider the long-term interests of shareholders. That isn’t just quarterly profit - it includes maintaining an environment in which the business can thrive and survive.

Systemic risks from climate and nature loss threaten the entire economy. Studies already suggest climate change could wipe 40% off asset values, and more if we reach climate tipping points. Complying with the Paris Agreement could reduce that loss to under 10%. Other studies show the huge profits that can be made from transition to a clean economy.

So acting on climate isn’t a matter of sacrificing returns - it’s essential to long-term prosperity.

Practical Advice for SMEs

Toby: Many SMEs fear collaboration - not always because of antitrust, but just from a survival instinct. What advice would you give them?

Maurits: I’d start with the guidance that’s already out there. NZLA’s antitrust “traffic-light” slides are simple: green agreements are safe, red aren’t, amber need legal advice. The UK CMA’s Green Agreements guidance is also clear and practical, as are the EU Commission Guidelines on Horizontal Agreements between competitors. These tools make it easier than people think.

And remember: survival depends on a stable economy. If climate risk destabilises everything, SMEs will be hit hardest. Collaboration is in their own commercial and financial self-interest.

Georgina: For smaller law firms, NZLA is inclusive. Every firm has something to give and something to gain. Peer-to-peer support is powerful, and joining collective efforts allows firms to move faster than they could alone.

Toby: If a board wanted to start integrating climate into fiduciary duties tomorrow, what’s the first step?

Maurits: Begin with simple resources. We’ve written a two-page blog, a paper, and recorded podcasts on this. The principle is straightforward: the costs of climate change and nature loss should be factored into business decisions. Transitioning early is in your own interest.

There’s also a social tipping point effect. Research shows that if around 20–25% of people or businesses change, the rest often follows through peer pressure and inspiration. Early movers create momentum. SMEs shouldn’t underestimate their influence in triggering that shift.

Looking Ahead

Toby: Where do you see fiduciary duty and sustainability law evolving over the next decade?

Maurits: First, legislation. The UK Pensions Bill could confirm integrating climate is part of fiduciary duty, either in the Act or in regulator guidance. Second, I expect litigation. Young pension contributors may decide to challenge funds that undermine their long-term value by investing in fossil expansion. Insurers may attempt to sue high emitters as climate attribution science strengthens - just as tobacco and asbestos cases eventually succeeded. International courts are already signalling states’ obligations on climate. The trend is clear: those who cause the damage will eventually be asked to bear the cost.

Georgina: My hope is that NZLA won’t need to exist in ten years, because our legal frameworks and practice will be aligned with net zero. And I’d love to see a mindset shift: from viewing the transition as a burden - what we can’t do - to seeing it as an opportunity. Look at the world we could create if we take the high road.

Maurits: Innovation also gives me hope. Beyond law and regulation, we need technology. I’m working with start-ups who are addressing decarbonisation in hard-to-abate sectors.

Combined with the right legal frameworks, they can make the transition both feasible and prosperous.

Closing Thoughts

Toby: Any final reflections on law and impact?

Georgina: For me, it’s simple. The law is often seen as a blocker. But it can be the missing piece that unlocks transformation. Lawyers have enormous influence, and if we align our advice with net zero, the ripple effect is huge.

Maurits: I’d echo that. Law and regulation are critical, but so are innovation and cooperation. This isn’t about sacrifice - it’s about building a more resilient, prosperous economy. It’s in all our interests.

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This series of interviews is in support of our mission to accelerate sustainability and decarbonisation across SMEs, NGOs and value chains. By sharing experiences, lessons learned and tips and tricks to embedding sustainability, we can all learn how to improve more, faster.

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