The alliance dedicated to reducing the carbon emissions of law firms today unveiled the carbon footprints of 32 firms and the Law Society.

Publishing its Carbon Footprint Report, the Legal Sector Alliance (LSA) also claimed that carbon emissions fell by 4% among member firms since publication of the first LSA report in December 2008.

National firm Eversheds secured the greatest reduction in carbon emissions among firms that published results in 2007/08 and 2008/09, with a 26.6% fall, while south-west firm Burges Salmon secured the greatest reduction in the average amount of carbon emitted per employee over the same period (11.9%).

Electricity took up around three quarters of most firms’ emissions profiles, with flights figuring highly among firms with significant networks of international offices, such as national firm DLA Piper and magic circle firm Linklaters.

Law Society chief executive Desmond Hudson said: ‘While emissions vary due to the size and business models of each firm, sharing the results will help the firms to better benchmark their own environmental performance, identify areas for possible improvement and share ideas for carbon reduction. The process that LSA members have gone through to report these emissions, together with a commitment to reduce and report on them, is crucial.’

The LSA now has 150 members, which it says represents a quarter of the solicitors’ profession. Firms reporting their results used the LSA carbon protocol, consisting of a spreadsheet-based measurement tool and practical guidance produced specifically for profession.

Further information is available at legalsectoralliance.com.