Greenwashing and misleading: Lawsuit against DWS – What this means for sustainable financial products

Greenwashing and misleading: Lawsuit against DWS – What this means for sustainable financial products

According to a report from www.lto.de, the asset manager DWS is being sued by the Baden-Württemberg consumer advice center for misleading advertising with “sustainable” financial products. The hearing before the Frankfurt am Main regional court is imminent and the question is whether DWS has actually implemented the criteria for its ESG investments. It is also about the transparency and verifiability of the advertising claims.

The lawsuit against DWS is part of a growing number of legal disputes related to greenwashing. Other large companies such as Tesla and KLM are also being held accountable in court because of their advertising claims. This development shows that legislators are increasingly tightening the requirements for companies' sustainability statements in order to create transparency and protect consumers from being misled.

The lawsuit and increasing regulation in the area of ​​greenwashing could have an impact on the financial market. Companies are increasingly being asked to review their sustainability claims and ensure that they are based on scientific methods. In the long term, this could lead to a more responsible use of sustainable financial products.

Overall, the lawsuit against DWS and the associated case law make it clear that greenwashing is increasingly becoming the focus of legal practice and that companies are encouraged to check their advertising statements and make them transparent in order to avoid misleading people.