Company: ACCO
Filing Date: 2025-02-21
Form Type: 10-K
Source: 0000950170-25-024931
Chunk: 118

Company: ACCO BRANDS Corp
Filing Date: 2025-02-21
Form: 10-K
Item: Item 1A
Chunk 118
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 relating to the environmental sustainability of our operations and our products and packaging, the health and safety of our employees and the protection of human rights in our supply chain, including: 

olaws mandating reporting obligations, including deforestation disclosures, 

oextended producer responsibility laws and plastic or packaging taxes, and

olaws establishing minimum recycled content requirements, governing labeling related to recyclability, and restricting or banning the use of certain materials in products or packaging, including single-use plastics (collectively “Sustainability Laws”);

All of these legal frameworks are complex and change frequently. Moreover, the requirements of these and other laws can vary significantly from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. Additionally, these laws and regulations are evolving rapidly, especially environmental laws, Sustainability Laws, and laws governing "green" marketing claims, and may become more stringent over 

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time, which could result in significant additional operating and compliance costs as well as increased risks of non-compliance. Further, the lack of harmonized regulatory requirements and reporting frameworks requires us to navigate myriad different requirements further increasing the cost and complexity of compliance and the risks of non-compliance. Failure by us to promptly and accurately meet these expectations and requirements may expose us to reputational and brand damage, regulatory penalties and litigation among other things. 

In addition, when we expand our business into new markets and into new product categories, we increase the number of legal and self-regulatory requirements with which we are required to comply, which increases the complexity and costs of compliance, as well as the risks of non-compliance. Any significant increase in our costs to comply with applicable legal and self-regulatory requirements, or any liability arising from non-compliance, could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations, and financial condition.

We are tracking and taking actions to comply with all of these laws and regulations; however, we cannot currently assess the impact that future requirements as well as regulation changes and enforcement practices will have on our business results of operations and financial condition.

Changes in trade policy and regulations in the United States and other countries, including changes in trade agreements and the imposition of tariffs, and the resulting consequences, are likely to adversely impact on our business, results of operations and financial condition.

The U.S. government has instituted or proposed changes to international trade policy through the renegotiation, and potential termination, of certain existing bilateral or multilateral trade agreements and treaties with, and the imposition of tariffs on a wide range of products and other goods from China, Canada, Europe and other countries. A significant number of the products