At DLA Piper, sustainability and responsibility are central to how we operate. We recognise both the opportunity and the responsibility for business to take a lead role in addressing pressing global issues. We believe sustainable procurement will help us to achieve sustainable growth by managing risk, maximising efficiency and driving value.

Objective

To protect from risk and maximise value for the firm, its brand, people and clients by managing the Environmental, Social and Economic risks associated with procurement activity through the application of common procedures throughout the firm.

Relation to other relevant policies

This policy sets out overarching expectations for the integration of ESG risk and opportunity management into DLA Piper's (DLA Piper International LLP) procurement management systems. It is aligned with other relevant and complementary policies that address specific sustainability or responsibility requirements or procedures across the firm (see Related Documents paragraph).

The more thematically focused policies will take precedent should any inconsistency arise between this policy and the ones listed here.

Scope

The policy applies in addition to any applicable local or international legal or regulatory obligations and in all professional and business activities undertaken by the firm.

Policy

DLA Piper International LLP (DLA Piper) is committed to identifying and managing the environmental, social and economic impacts in our supply chain. The Sustainable Procurement Policy outlines the standards and expectations that we expect everyone at DLA Piper to adhere to.

To meet this commitment we will:

• recognise and take action to mitigate the social and environmental impacts of our supply chain, and take a life-cycle perspective on goods and services;
• comply with all applicable laws and regulations. If national law conflicts with the standards set out in this Policy or any other DLA Piper policy, we will look for ways to meet the higher standard, and encourage our suppliers to do the same;
• work to integrate principles of sustainable procurement, as outlined by ISO 20400, into our procurement management systems and processes, and strive to ensure our management systems adhere to high standards of practice, as is generally recognised and accepted by the global business community;
• consider the entire life-cycle costs to include value for money and the social and environmental costs and benefits of our procurement activities;
• ensure continual improvement of our sustainability practices and outcomes, and encourage our suppliers to do the same;
• aim to reduce economic inequality in our communities and to create other forms of societal value by directing, where possible, a portion of our total procurement spend to minority-owned businesses, local suppliers, small and medium-sized enterprises, social enterprises, suppliers based in the Least Developed Countries, and other types of suppliers as relevant within the local context of where we operate. We will do this through a phased approach and by removing barriers to entry for these suppliers to allow them to increase their capacity and compliance with our full standards over time.
• respect internationally recognised human rights as outlined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights; The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights; The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights; and the core international human rights treaties;
• seek to work with suppliers that support the firm in meeting our ESG commitments, partner with suppliers to deliver our sustainability objectives and encourage innovative procurement practices to promote more sustainable outcomes throughout our supply chain;
• remain transparent and openly report on our performance internally and externally, as appropriate; and
• respect, consider and respond to the interests of stakeholders affected by our procurement activities.

Roles and Responsibilities

All of the firm's partners, employees, interns and consultants are individually responsible for complying with this policy. Guidance on specific responsibilities assigned to everyone, and to partners and others with management or leadership roles, can be found in the Sustainable Procurement section of Pulse (the firm's intranet).

Related Documents

• Supplier Code of Conduct
• Human Rights and Modern Slavery Policy
• Environmental Sustainability Policy
• Energy and Climate Change Policy
• Health and Safety Policy

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Policy/Document Owner: Jacqueline King, Chief Operating Officer
Policy Manager: Charlotte Woodworth, Head of Procurement