ERISA Requires ESG Considerations, U.N. Report Says

By Barry B. Burr

Pension fund fiduciaries under ERISA are “arguably required” to integrate environmental, social and corporate governance factors into their regular investment decision-making process, Paul A. Hilton, director of advanced equities research, Calvert Investments, said today at a teleconference on a new United Nations report on such fiduciary responsibility.

“These ESG issue are increasingly becoming very real and material issues that have bottom-line impacts on companies,” Mr. Hilton said at the teleconference. “And so with that understanding, it’s clear, unlike (using only) a simple value approach, an approach that integrates these (factors) as part of the regular investment process is arguably required by any major fiduciary and that certainly holds true” under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, Mr. Hilton said at the teleconference.

Continue Reading ERISA Requires ESG Considerations, U.N. Report Says