Critical Minerals – Recent Legal Developments Around the World

This webinar provides a global overview of legal and policy developments shaping critical minerals supply chains across key jurisdictions.

Credit(s)

1.2

Duration

58 minutes

The fast-evolving issues surrounding the development, production, distribution, and use of critical minerals continue to increase as countries around the world pass and implement government regulations, policies, and actions to secure sustainable supply chains, including government investments and incentives, strategic alliances, and even nationalization of critical minerals projects. These actions are driving transformative changes in energy, transportation, and manufacturing across the world.

Join our panel of expert speakers who will provide an overview of the state of critical minerals legal developments around the world. This webinar will address updates and developments in Australia, Canada, Europe, and the United States.

Speakers

Credits

Materials

1.2 CLE Credits

This course has been accredited for CLE credit in Colorado. CLE credit hours shown are for Colorado only. A CLE course number for Colorado will be provided to attendees on their certificates of attendance once a course has been completed. New Mexico attorneys who complete a course must notify us (cle@rmmlf.org) because we are required to report credits for you. If this course has been approved for RPL/CPL credit with the American Association of Professional Landmen (AAPL), the credits will be listed below in a separate section for AAPL. If applicable, Component Codes for AAPL recertification will also be provided. Please contact RMMLF if you need independent verification by the provider of your attendance or participation for CLE purposes. Except as provided above, RMMLF generally does not apply for accreditation from any other MCLE/CPD organizations for its online legal education program. Upon completion of a program a certificate of attendance will be issued to all attendees. Except as provided above, attendees must verify with their respective state bars and CPD organizations and their specific rules as to whether or not the certificate of attendance will be recognized by that body for MCLE/CPD purposes, and the number of CLE/CPD credits that may be available. The live presentation of the on-demand program has been accredited in most mandatory states as part of a larger course, but such accreditation does not assure recognition of the on-demand program.

REBECCA MAJORS is a Paris-based partner at Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer specializing in cross-border transactions in the energy and natural resources sectors, including acquisitions, joint ventures, and project development. She has extensive experience across Europe and Africa, as well as in Asia, South America, and the Middle East.

A dual British-French national, she is qualified in both English and French law and has been consistently recognized by top legal directories for her expertise in energy and mining. She has spent over two decades in the firm’s Paris office and previously co-led its energy team in Tokyo. In addition to her legal work, she teaches at leading institutions, supports diversity initiatives within her firm, and contributes to capacity-building programs in Africa.

MELISSA “Mel” SANDERSON is the Co-Chair of the Critical Minerals Institute (CMI). She is a global leader in geopolitics and ESG with 40+ years of experience across diplomacy, mining, and sustainability. She served as a US diplomat (1985–2006) in key roles across Latin America, Europe, and Africa, where she advanced US-DRC relations, supported NATO expansion, and helped enforce arms reduction efforts. She later held senior roles at Freeport-McMoRan, founded Sanderson Consulting LLC, and advises major mining firms. She also serves as a director at American Rare Earths, teaches at Thunderbird, and speaks frequently on critical minerals, strategy, and global governance.

ELIZABETH STEYN is the Associate Dean, Faculty of Law at the University of Calgary in Alberta. Prior to joining the University of Calgary Faculty of Law in 2023, Elizabeth was the Cassels Brock Fellow in Mining and Finance Law at the Western University Faculty of Law where she led the law school's interdisciplinary sustainable development curriculum, including the Global Sustainability Certification and the Graduate Diploma in Mining Law, Finance, and Sustainability. She also was a faculty member of the Western Institute for Earth and Space Exploration.

Fluent in five languages, she is the author/co-author of 16 articles/book chapters in peer-reviewed publications and has spoken at national and international conferences on four continents. She obtained her Doctorate in Law (LL.D.) in 2018 from the Université de Montréal (Mention of Excellence; Dean's Honour List) on the harmonization of the protection of Indigenous sacred sites and the development of natural resource projects.