Military activities and armed conflicts are a growing climate liability. Along with thousands of deaths, twelve months of war in Ukraine resulted in around 120 million tons of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions – matching Belgium’s emissions over the same period. The climate footprint of the first fifteen months of Israel’s […]
Climate Litigation
283 posts
After the International Court of Justice (ICJ) issued its advisory opinion on Obligations of States in Respect of Climate Change, many observers were quick to conclude that it “[opens] the door to a cascade of lawsuits” (Politico). The opinion is indeed an important confirmation that the rules of State responsibility […]
Private actors are still expanding fossil fuel exploration and production while states continue to enable and even encourage such activities by granting subsidies, licences, and legal protection. This happens even though most fossil fuels must clearly stay in the ground if the Paris target of limiting global warming to 1.5˚C […]
In its long-awaited advisory opinion on climate change, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) made a range of landmark findings on States’ obligations to address the climate crisis and the consequences of failing to do so. The pronouncements from the world’s highest court will now serve as immediate authoritative guidance […]
The advisory opinion rendered by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on 23 July 2025 marks a pivotal moment in the articulation of States’ obligations concerning climate change. While based on broader rules and principles of international law, the opinion foregrounded the United Nations Convention on the Law of the […]
This summer has seen two major climate advisory opinions published – first from the Inter-American Court of Human Rights (IACtHR), and then from the International Court of Justice (ICJ). Both opinions address human rights law, embedding human rights in a broader overarching framework of international law that also includes international […]
On July 24, 2025, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) delivered its long-awaited advisory opinion on climate change. Reactions have been swift and enthusiastic. Some of the excitement arguably stems less from the content of the ruling than from the sheer scale of the process itself. The list of individuals […]
The advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on the Obligations of States in Respect of Climate Change has already been hailed as a historic contribution to the evolving body of case-law on climate-related international law. The opinion was described as a “historic legal victory for small island […]