On 23 February 2026, the Federal Court handed down its much-anticipated decision in the greenwashing case brought by Australasian Centre for Corporate Responsibility (ACCR) against Santos Limited (Santos), a leading producer and supplier of natural gas in Australia.
The ACCR, which at all material times was a shareholder in Santos, claimed that Santos had engaged in misleading or deceptive conduct in its 2020 Investor Day Presentation, its 2020 Annual Report and its 2021 Climate Change Report. Specifically, the ACCR alleged that Santos had contravened s 1041H of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) and s 18 and s 33 of the Australian Consumer Law (being Sch 2 to the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 (Cth) (ACL)).
In summary, the ACCR alleged that the use by Santos of “clean energy” and “clean fuel” to describe natural gas and its description of itself as a producer of “clean energy”, its representations in its 2030 Target and Net Zero Roadmap regarding greenhouse gas reduction and net zero targets and its representation to deliver “clean” hydrogen in the future, were misleading.
The action against Santos, commenced by the ACCR in 2021, was considered the first case globally to allege that a company’s net zero target was misleading, rather than just inadequate.
The Court dismissed each of the claims against Santos and ordered the ACCR to pay Santos’ costs. In its thorough examination of the claims, the Court found that the climate related statements by Santos had to be read in context and from the perspective of the relevant target audience. The Court set out in detail what it considered to be the characteristics attributable to the target audience, finding that it was not as specific a subset of investors as contended for by Santos nor as broad as the ACCR submitted.
While Santos was successful in this case, the standard for climate change disclosures remains high and subject to increased scrutiny by ASIC. The case provides practical guidance for companies making climate change disclosures and sustainability related claims.
Commenting on the decision, the ACCR said: “This was the first court case in the world to test a company’s net zero claims, and it has helped drive significant improvements in climate reporting in the Australian market and internationally. It is disappointing that, in our view, the Court’s decision has not reinforced these advancements.”
The judgement runs to over 250 pages and can be found at https://www.judgments.fedcourt.gov.au/judgments/