How Sustainable is Sustainability in Law?

According to the results of the Legal Advisory Requirements research, a joint study by Ernst & Young and Harvard Law School Center on the Legal Profession, legal departments and legal advisors have a significant importance in the success of companies. The research particularly emphasizes the importance of legal advisors in preventing legal risks, compliance risks, and reputational risks related to sustainability. Furthermore, determining how legal departments will contribute to sustainability is among the prominent topics. Based on this research, which states that different units need to work in cooperation, you will read an article with problems, solutions, and goals on sustainability in corporate law. Companies affected by the sustainability issues of their operating areas are both the source and the solution to the problems: The traditional understanding of corporate law actually focuses on managing risks by examining how and in what direction sustainability issues affect the company. On the other hand, the impact of companies on sustainability is closely related to various areas of law, developing especially in environmental law and human rights. Don't you think we are facing a quite complex problem? Corporate law, which focuses on foreseeing and preventing risks, approaches the concept of sustainability from the perspective of the company's sustainability, but not following concrete activities to achieve development goals does not align with the aims of sustainability. We can summarize the steps to be followed to achieve development in line with these goals in a few sentences: In contractual relationships, investors can make sustainability policies binding as an indispensable investment condition. Companies can contribute to both corporate culture and society by committing to active and passive actions on environmental sustainability. While the Turkish Commercial Code primarily focuses on regulations regarding the internal order and operation of companies, special regulations based on corporate governance are almost non-existent. In this case, integrating a sustainability-oriented management system into the TCC; and making regulations on issues such as reporting and public disclosure more comprehensive could be important steps in this regard. Mandatory sustainability reporting can be popularized in a way that does not hinder companies from achieving their economic goals and does not ignore the cost factor. Relevant reports should also be reviewed by expert and independent organizations. The approval and confirmation of compliance with reporting criteria can increase the effectiveness of this system. Since a scenario where things do not work very well without sanctions in a place where there is an obligation presents a quite probable picture, a model for this can be created. Companies, which play important roles in the development and progress of societies in line with economic activities, are very important for sustainable development. Economic sustainability, which is necessary for the survival of businesses, must progress simultaneously with law so that social sustainability can also be ensured. Because in an environment where both dimensions are not considered together, the phenomenon of sustainability itself will not be continuous and, unfortunately, will remain only a concept. At the same time, these two dimensions need to be supported from an environmental perspective. The periods when companies only aimed at profit maxi…