Environmental claims, unfair competition and patterns in comparative jurisprudence

On the greenwashing practices

Abstract

The growing concern for the preservation of the the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) has acquired significant importance in recent years. This explains the increase in the number of environmental claims made by companies in the market. In this context, greenwashing practices, which are the subject of this paper, have developed. This work answers affirmatively to the question of whether the current legislation on unfair competition contains adequate instruments to combat this type of conduct. In addition, the new harmonizing standards that the European Union is proposing to adopt in this area are examined. Finally, attention is paid to comparative case law on this issue, drawing some interesting conclusions about the way in which different jurisdictions have been dealing with this interesting problem.