Climate Litigation

195 posts

The ICJ’s Advisory Opinion on Climate Change: What Happens Now?

  Climate change litigation has finally reached the world’s highest court. On March 29, 2023, the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) adopted a resolution requesting an advisory opinion from the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on the obligations of States with respect to climate change. The UNGA adopted resolution (A/77/L.58) […]

Climate Docket and the Future in the Case Law of the European Court of Human Rights

Adjudication typically looks backward: it runs after the facts. This is also true for human rights adjudication and the activity of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR). The ECtHR was built on the idea that individuals who suffered (past tense) or suffer (present tense) violations of the rights and […]

French NGOs Target Bank’s Activities Contributing to Climate Change

In October 2022, French environmental NGOs Notre Affaire à Tous, Les Amis de la Terre, and Oxfam France sent a notice of intent to sue BNP Paribas. Considering the answer by BNP Paribas, sent on January 24, 2023, as largely insufficient and unsatisfactory, the NGOs brought a suit before the […]

After Judgment: Australian regulator compelled to act on climate following successful intervention

After the initial buzz that follows a winning climate change case, it can be difficult to measure its real-life impact. Many have questioned whether public interest litigation in general, and climate cases in particular, can effect meaningful and lasting change. The answer is probably “it depends.”  If launched at the […]