ESG_Building_BlocksCorporate leaders are grumbling about ESG. That's what I learned from this morning's New York Times Dealbook newsletter, taking the pulse of executives gathered in Davos, Switzerland for the World Economic Forum.

But over in their legal departments, attorneys don't have the luxury of wishful thinking, like one executive who told the Times, "I hope ESG just goes away." My evidence here comes out of recent reports from two of the largest law firms in the world.

Surveying 600 senior lawyers at large companies across four continents on the type of disputes that present a risk to their organizations, Baker McKenzie found 58% percent of respondents identified ESG, second only to cybersecurity.