More climate lawsuits are being filed than ever before to hold companies and countries accountable.
At least 230 new climate events are predicted for 2023, but researchers noted that the increase in these events has slowed compared to previous years.
Aerial photo of people walking on a flooded street near Navegantes, Porto Alegre, Rio da Grande do State, Brazil, May 4, 2024. More climate lawsuits have been filed in Brazil than most other countries, according to a new report.
Carlos Fabal/AFP (Getty Images)
Climate Wire | Climate lawsuits against governments and corporations are still growing globally, but the pace of growth may be slowing, according to new research.
that much annual report The London School of Economics’ Grantham Institute for Climate Change and the Environment assessed climate litigation trends and found that at least 230 new climate lawsuits would be filed in 2023. However, report authors Joana Setzer and Kate Higham noted that the number of climate lawsuits grew less rapidly than in 2023. over the past few years.
They said the trend could signal “a consolidation and focus of strategic litigation efforts in areas expected to have high impact.”
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Nonetheless, climate litigation has continued to spread to new countries, with the first cases filed in Panama and Portugal in 2023.
Setzer and Higham wrote that it “remains difficult to determine whether the court case is moving forward or standing in the way.” But they added that some of the lawsuits clearly had implications for climate governance.
Nearly 50 new “climate washing” cases were filed last year, making it one of the fastest-expanding areas of litigation. The Grantham Institute defines climatewashing lawsuits as cases where companies and governments are presented with false or misleading climate claims.
The report notes that litigation has been successful, with more than 70% of completed cases resulting in decisions in favor of the challenger.
Climate litigators have also broadened their scope. While corporate lawsuits have traditionally focused on the fossil fuel sector, they are now being launched against airlines, financial services firms, and food and beverage companies, according to the report.
Setzer and Higham said there was also likely to be an increase in lawsuits challenging the government’s net zero target.
The United States remains the leader, with 1,745 lawsuits filed, with 129 new lawsuits expected in 2023. The United Kingdom, Brazil and Germany follow as the countries with the most climate lawsuits.
Setzer and Higam said older events from Hungary and Namibia were identified for the first time, bringing the number of countries with recorded climate events to 55.
The report also introduces a new category of “transition risk”, which is a lawsuit brought against corporate directors and executives who have managed climate risks. The report was written by shareholders of Polish utility Enea. Decided to file such a case Against the former director over plans to invest in a new coal-fired power plant.
Setzer and Higham also identified six “tap-off” cases challenging the funding of projects and activities that are not in line with climate action. There have been 33 such cases filed since 2015.
But the report notes that not all lawsuits are aligned with climate action. Of the more than 230 lawsuits filed in 2023, nearly 50 “appear to be intentional legal tactics aimed at blocking climate action,” it said.
This case includes consumer protection litigation This is a lawsuit filed by Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skmetti (R) against investment giant BlackRock. The lawsuit claims that BlackRock made false or misleading statements about the extent to which environmental, social, and governance factors played a role in the company’s investment strategy.
The Grantham report said the ESG backlash in U.S. climate litigation was “far removed from trends elsewhere in the world.”
The report highlighted a landmark ruling last year in which a Montana court ruled that the state violated the rights of young people by failing to consider the climate impacts of oil and gas infrastructure.
“This ruling may serve as a model for the types of scientific arguments and evidence that can be used to overcome obstacles to litigation standing and causation that have previously caused major problems in similar cases,” the report said, but the authors They noted that the decision was made on narrow grounds and is being appealed to the Montana Supreme Court.
In its section on “polluter pays” lawsuits in the United States – a category that encompasses about 20 lawsuits by local governments seeking compensation from the oil and gas industry for its role in climate change – the report notes that trials for these lawsuits He says it could take “months, even years” for this to begin. But some cases are starting to move into the discovery phase.
Through that process, “the thousands of pages of internal documents made public, both in manuscript and in public, could in themselves significantly change the political debate surrounding a defendant,” Setzer and Higham wrote.
The climate liability case has been plagued by a long-running venue dispute. Earlier this month, the Supreme Court asked the Biden administration Express your opinion on this matter.
Reprinted from E&E News Courtesy of POLITICO, LLC. Copyright 2024. E&E News provides essential news for energy and environmental professionals.
