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Carbox -- The Next New Revenue Frontier For Lawyers
Most likely, you've heard of Sarbanes-Oxley Act, which requires companies to disclose to investors any business risks facing the company. Now there's a new hybrid -- Carbox -- which refers to a company's obligation under SOX to disclose a new type of business risk: the cost of emissions. As Forbes reports, with climate change legislation likely regardless of which presidential candidate wins, companies may soon be required to comply with limits on carbon emissions. Companies that exceed these emission caps may face added costs, either in the form of fines for non-compliance or added expenses associated with the purchase of offsets or investment in new technology to reduce emissions.
Already companies are preparing for Carbox. Many are hiring analysts to measure the carbon footprint of their supply chain. Apparently, data centers are "hugely consumptive forces," so companies adding servers to keep up with Web 2.0 demand will need to deal with an increased carbon footprint.
For lawyers, increased carbon emissions increase the need for their services. Companies will need lawyers to deal with "Carbox" compliance and grapple with issues such as what environmental risks must be disclosed and when. In short, as our country goes green, lawyers can also count on earning more green.
Posted by Carolyn Elefant on July 3, 2008 at 01:36 PM | Permalink
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