Vinson & Elkins Adds ESG and Corporate Governance Attorney from The Clorox Company

Vinson & Elkins has added Jon Solorzano, who has an extensive background in environmental, social and governance (ESG), mergers and acquisitions (M&A), and corporate governance, as counsel in its Los Angeles office. He most recently served as Senior Director of Legal & Corporate Development for The Clorox Company and will join the firm on Monday, January 23.

In his new role, Solorzano will focus on advising public and private companies and their boards of directors on matters and opportunities related to ESG, corporate governance, sustainability considerations, shareholder activism, risk management, securities law and M&A. He will also serve as a co-head of Vinson & Elkins’ ESG Taskforce.

“Jon’s experience helping build and manage a comprehensive ESG program for a Fortune 500 company will help support our existing services and expand our sustainability offerings for clients,” said Sarah Morgan, co-head of Vinson & Elkins’ Mergers & Acquisitions and Capital Markets practice and a co-head of the ESG Taskforce. “Jon’s regular engagement with institutional investors, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), corporate strategic business units and other key constituencies while at Clorox has helped the company implement policies and practices to address multiple stakeholder interests, mitigate risks and enhance corporate objectives. His background implementing pragmatic ESG strategies and controls and disclosures in-house, and the viewpoints of various stakeholders regarding the same, will be extremely valuable to companies assessing and incorporating ESG practices into their corporate strategies.”

At Clorox, Solorzano helped lead the company’s ESG strategy and stakeholder engagement. He regularly worked with senior executives and the board of directors to develop strategies, enterprise risk management practices and ESG governance and reporting. During his tenure, he helped establish and execute strategies around climate change, plastics and waste, supply chain transparency and diversity and inclusion. Solorzano also served as the company’s Assistant Corporate Secretary, working closely with the board of directors and executive team on topics including corporate governance, fiduciary duties, ESG risks and strategy, disclosures, ESG ratings and rankings optimization, and proxy guidance. As Clorox’s lead M&A lawyer, Solorzano led multiple acquisitions and divestitures for the company and its brands. Solorzano also has worked in Clorox’s corporate development group, helping the company develop and implement its inorganic strategy with a particular focus on strategic M&A and investments in furtherance of its sustainability objectives around climate and plastics.

“With the increased regulatory and multi-stakeholder demands facing companies, this is an exciting time to join Vinson & Elkins. The firm has an exceptional cross-practice group of lawyers who truly understand an array of governance and sustainability issues, and I’m looking forward to working with this impressive team to serve our clients,” said Solorzano.

“For many years, Vinson & Elkins has been dedicated to helping our clients navigate ESG risks and opportunities and build tailored strategies for their operations, and we continue to see increasing external pressure to enhance their focus in these areas,” said Matt Dobbins, a partner in Vinson & Elkins’ Environmental practice and a co-head of the ESG Taskforce. “Adding someone of Jon’s caliber, with his in-house knowledge and hands-on role developing business-oriented best practices for a large global enterprise, provides more depth to our interdisciplinary team as investor expectations and the voluntary and regulatory frameworks continue to evolve.”

Solorzano received his J.D. degree from Columbia Law School and holds a bachelor’s degree, with honors, from University of California, Santa Barbara. Prior to moving in house, Solorzano was an associate at Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe and Skadden. He is admitted to practice in California and New York.

ESG touches nearly every practice group at Vinson & Elkins, from supporting clients as they manage the energy transition to developing ESG policies and plans to helping companies, investors and stakeholders proactively understand, manage and disclose ESG strategies, risks and opportunities. The firm’s ESG practitioners draw upon their significant capabilities in its governance, environmental, technology, shareholder activism, sustainable finance and labor and employment teams to provide practical and tailored guidance for clients.