Climate Law Blog

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 Petition) finding that the Australian […]

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 the Earth Ltd and Others) […]

By Jacob Elkin While the most prominent climate litigation to date has primarily focused on mitigation—reducing greenhouse gas emissions—adaptation litigation will also increase as climate impacts become more frequent, extreme, and intense. Adaptation cases frequently rely on evidence drawn from scientific research into past and future climate change. In a white paper published today, the […]

By Marlies Hesselman* The first week of July 2022 brought on several major developments in climate litigation in the Netherlands, with possibly significant ramifications for a new type of global climate litigation. After landmark decisions in Urgenda and Shell, plaintiffs are asking a Dutch court to weigh in on a case that forms part of […]

By Maria Antonia Tigre While the United States Supreme Court yesterday delivered a major setback to the EPA’s ability to regulate greenhouse gas emissions in West Virginia. v. EPA, courts in other countries this week have issued decisions that demonstrate that courts worldwide remain an important forum for the potential advancement of climate rights. Youth […]

By Pedro Cisterna-Gaete and Maria Antonia Tigre In March 2022, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) and the Office of the Special Rapporteur on Economic, Social, Cultural and Environmental Rights (REDESCA) jointly published Resolution No. 3/21, entitled Climate Emergency: Scope of Inter-American human rights obligations. The resolution’s purpose is to systematize the human rights […]

By Prof. Muhammed Tawfiq Ladan, Phd* Background Countries around the world have increasingly adopted climate change laws over the last two decades. This is partially attributable to the dynamism in international climate negotiations but also a growing appreciation of the crucial role that national laws and policy measures play. Legislative instruments play a critical role […]

By Amy Turner Earlier this month, groups supporting the City of Berkeley, California filed six amicus briefs in the appellate proceeding California Restaurant Association v. City of Berkeley, currently before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. At issue in the case is whether the U.S. Energy Policy & Conservation Act (EPCA), which […]

By Jacob Elkin Today, the Sabin Center filed an amicus brief on behalf of the National League of Cities and the U.S. Conference of Mayors in West Virginia v. EPA, a case that is currently before the United States Supreme Court. The case concerns the scope of the United States Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) authority […]

A new climate litigation claim in Brazil raises the pressure for increased climate action and protection of the Amazon rainforest By Maria Antonia Tigre On October 26, 2021, Observatório do Clima (OC), a network of 71 civil society organizations, filed a class action at the federal court of Amazonas against the Environmental Ministry and Brazilian […]