Maria Antonia Tigre

50 posts
Dr. Maria Antonia Tigre is the Director of Global Climate Litigation at the Sabin Center for Climate Change Law at Columbia Law School.

A look back at significant decisions in climate litigation in 2022

By Maria Antonia Tigre As noted at the end of last year, 2021 was significant for climate litigation, with several decisions worldwide providing a fresh look at stakeholder responsibility for climate change. 2022 was no different, with courts further delineating the procedural dimensions of climate cases and expanding on the […]

Sabin Center files third-party intervention in the Klimaseniorinnen case at the European Court of Human Rights

On Monday, December 5, the Sabin Center filed written observations as a third-party intervener at the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) in Verein KlimaSeniorinnen and others v Switzerland. The case was brought in November 2020 by a group of senior women who allege that their health is threatened by […]

Municipalities of Puerto Rico v. Exxon: a unique class action against fossil fuel companies presses for climate accountability in the United States

By Korey Silverman-Roati and Maria Antonia Tigre On November 22, 2022, sixteen municipalities of Puerto Rico filed a lawsuit in the federal district court in Puerto Rico seeking to hold coal, oil, and gas companies liable for losses resulting from storms during the 2017 hurricane season and ongoing economic losses […]

Indonesian Human Rights Commission’s first human rights complaint on the impacts of climate change

Guest Commentary: Indonesian Human Rights Commission’s first human rights complaint on the impacts of climate change By Margaretha Quina and Mae Manupipatpong*   In July 2022, Indonesians at the frontline of climate change filed a claim before the National Human Rights Commission seeking recognition that climate change is a matter […]

The Role of Human Rights Institutions In Tackling Climate Change: A Case Study of the Philippines

Introduction Earlier this year, the Commission on Human Rights of the Philippines released its final report detailing the findings of a groundbreaking inquiry (In re Greenpeace Southeast Asia and Others) into the responsibility of “Carbon Majors”—large global fossil fuel and cement companies—for the adverse effects of climate change on human […]

U.N. Human Rights Committee finds that Australia is violating human rights obligations towards Torres Strait Islanders for climate inaction

United Nations Human Rights Committee finds that Australia is violating human rights obligations towards Torres Strait Islanders for climate inaction By Maria Antonia Tigre   On September 23, 2022, the United Nations Human Rights Committee (UNHRC) delivered a landmark decision in Daniel Billy and others v Australia (Torres Strait Islanders […]

Guest Commentary: Legal action in the UK in a time of climate crisis

Guest Commentary: Legal action in a time of climate crisis By Katie de Kauwe and Millie John-Pierre* On July 18, 2022, one of the hottest days on record in the UK, an equally ground-breaking judgment was handed down by the High Court of England and Wales in R (Friends of […]