Directors' responsibilities in times of change: Intesa Sanpaolo Business Law and Regulation Conference

The first Intesa Sanpaolo Business Law and Regulation Conference, hosted at the Saïd Business School on 6 March 2026, brings together leading scholars, practitioners, and policymakers to reflect on the evolving responsibilities of corporate directors in a time of rapid legal, economic, and societal change. Against the backdrop of intensifying pressures – from climate litigation and sustainability regulation to shifting geoeconomic dynamics and the technological transition – the conference will explore how boards can navigate these intersecting challenges while preserving sound governance and long-term value creation.

The discussions throughout the day will examine how the legal and regulatory frameworks that shape corporate decision-making are adapting to a world marked by uncertainty, interdependence, and new forms of risk. They will probe developments in directors' duties, the boundaries of corporate purpose, and the extent to which directors are expected to integrate societal and environmental concerns into business strategy – at a time when a clear transatlantic drift has emerged, with Europe still broadly committed to the ESG agenda and the United States, under the current administration, in full-fledged ESG backlash mode. By drawing insights from comparative law, finance, and policy, the conference aims to illuminate how governance can remain both responsible and resilient in an era of transformation.

Programme:

09:00 - 09:30 Registration and coffee

09:30 - 10:45 Session 1 | Setting the scene – a transatlantic perspective
Kristin van Zwieten (Moderator)

Opening Keynote John Armour (Speaker)

Board Overload Roy Shapira (Speaker), Moran Ofir (Discussant)

10:45 - 11:05 Refreshments

11:05 - 12:20 Session 2 | Corporate climate litigation
Thom Wetzer (Moderator)

Mapping Corporate Climate Litigation Outside the US Ekaterina Aristova (Speaker), Clara Cibrario Assereto (Discussant)

Manager Partitioning William Moon (Speaker), Jill Fisch (Discussant)

12:20 - 13:15 Lunch

13:15 - 14:30 Session 3 | Sustainability due diligence
Luca Enriques (Moderator)

Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence: All Roads Lead to Somewhere Andreas Engert (Speaker), Paul Davies (Discussant)

The Human Rights Obligations of Corporate Directors Kish Parella (Speaker), Assaf Hamdani (Discussant)

14:30 - 14:50 Refreshments

14:50 - 16:00 Session 4 | Navigating Complexity: Directors Duties in Practice
Rupert Younger (Moderator)
Jacques Moscianese, Karoline Herms, Maria Darby-Walker, Barbara Navarro (Panelists)

16:00 Closing remarks
Luca Enriques, Kristin van Zwieten, Rupert Younger (Speakers)

For further details, please see the conference webpage: https://www.ecgi.global/events/directors-responsibilities-in-a-time-of-change

Further inquiries: Kristin van Zwieten and Luca Enriques