The climate crisis has been a source of extreme concern in recent years, as the pace and ferocity of unstable weather patterns have increased measurably. Successive climate conferences and panels have allowed nations to form an uneasy global alliance in order to curb man-made greenhouse emissions and slow the pace of climate change, but many spectators suggest that new legislation does not go far enough.
In concert with the institution of new international accords and domestic laws relating to carbon emissions and sustainability, the legal sector has ramped up its direct engagement with climate-related legislative issues – for better, and for worse. Businesses are engaging more with their own sustainability issues, and seeking guidance via legal counsel; other businesses are seeking legal methods to downplay their own responsibilities to the climate crisis.
Fundamentally, climate law has become a much more prescient field lately. Climate change litigation is more common than ever, as businesses and corporate bodies seek to work alongside litigation lawyers to tactfully approach the climate law challenges that they themselves face. But what are the key global trends driving a uniform uptick in climate litigation?
Government Litigation
Climate change litigation is being used impactfully to hold governments of nation states to account for their own contributions to – and attempts to mitigate – the climate crisis. According to a recent statistical analysis of climate litigation since 2005, 80 cases have been submitted against governments – with a record-breaking 30 having been submitted in 2021 alone.
These acts of litigation seek to drive more ambitious sustainability resolutions in government policy. In the UK, environmental law charity ClientEarth joined forces with the Good Law Project to bring the government to account for its unsuitable net-zero strategy. The High Court ruled in ClientEarth’s favour, finding that the government’s own strategy fell afoul of the 2008 Climate Change Act.
Business Litigation
Governments are not the only bodies under fire for their contributions to the climate crisis. Private organisations are also facing increasing litigation over the carbon cost of new products or services, as climate agitators seek to bring overly pollutive practices to court – and also to the court of public opinion.
Fossil fuel companies bear the brunt of this new climate legislation push, but other industries are beginning to feel the effects. Agriculture, in particular, has seen a rise in litigation interrogating its pollutive practices.
Corporate Greenwashing
The scope of climate litigation extends beyond such interrogations, though. Many businesses seek to ‘offset’ their carbon emissions with negative carbon programmes and emission-reduction technology – both of which can often be unproven or misleading in their efficacy. Climate litigators seek to bring vague climate commitments under close legal scrutiny, forcing ‘greenwashed’ businesses to properly declare their emissions and the efficiency of any green or carbon offset initiatives.
