Canadian Securities Administrators pauses work on mandatory climate-related disclosure rule and diversity disclosure amendments

The Canadian Securities Administrators has paused its development of a new mandatory climate-related disclosure rule and proposed amendments to existing diversity-related disclosure requirements, citing the need to support Canadian markets and issuers as they adapt to recent U.S. and global developments. Existing securities law disclosure obligations remain in place, including the requirement to disclose material climate-related risks. The CSA pointed issuers to the Canadian Sustainability Standards Board’s sustainability standards issued in December 2024 as a voluntary framework for sustainability and climate-related disclosure. For diversity-related disclosure, non-venture issuers must continue to disclose the representation of women on boards and among executive officers under the current National Instrument 58-101 Disclosure of Corporate Governance Practices requirements. The CSA also reiterated it will continue monitoring issuer disclosure practices and take action on misleading disclosure, including greenwashing. The CSA plans to monitor domestic and international regulatory developments and expects to revisit both projects in future years to finalize issuer requirements, with appropriate notice before any change in project status.