WashU Law proudly recognizes Professor Andrew Tuch, whose scholarship was awarded the 2024 Berkeley-European Corporate Governance Institute Best Paper Award. This annual honor recognizes legal research in environmental, social, and governance (ESG) issues.
The culmination of the week-long Berkeley Forum for Corporate Governance, the academic symposium featured presentations from 10 finalists from the US and abroad. Professor Tuch and his coauthors were awarded the senior category award, which included a $10,000 prize.
Professor Tuch coauthored the award-winning paper “Green Gatekeepers” alongside Luca Enriques (University of Oxford) and Alessandro Romano (Bocconi University). In an era of ubiquitous green claims, where products are labeled “recycled,” “responsibly sourced,” or “carbon neutral,” the accuracy of such assertions often remains beyond the reach of consumers and investors. “Green Gatekeepers” explores the critical role of third-party certification in addressing this information asymmetry. These intermediaries set and verify green standards, ensuring that environmental claims align with reality rather than misleading marketing.
“A policy framework like the one we propose is of the utmost importance because a great deal is at stake in the work of green gatekeepers,” said Professor Tuch and his co-authors. “If firms market inaccurate credentials, consumers and investors—who cannot be relied on to verify green claims—may be misled. Worse still, the promise of demand-side climate change mitigation strategies may be squandered.”
The paper, forthcoming in the Minnesota Law Review, has been profiled on the Oxford Business Law Blog and the Columbia Law School Blue Sky Blog. Read the full article here.
Professor Tuch is an expert in corporate and securities law. His work has appeared in multiple law reviews, peer-reviewed journals, and edited volumes. Two of his articles have been selected in a national poll of scholars as among the Top Ten Corporate and Securities articles in their respective years.
Professor Tuch’s recognition reflects WashU Law’s enduring tradition of fostering cutting-edge scholarship that addresses the world’s most pressing issues.
Learn more about Professor Tuch and his scholarship here.
