Wolters Kluwer: Sustainability & ESG Law’s Post

🌍 Support #Juliana v. United States Campaign If you’re in the US, we need your support for the Juliana v. United States case.) What happened? In 2015, a groundbreaking lawsuit, Juliana v. United States, was filed by 21 young plaintiffs against the U.S. government. The case argues that the government's promotion of fossil fuels—and the resulting contribution to climate change—violates their constitutional rights to life, liberty, and property. 📜 Why does it matter? This lawsuit is vital, seeking to hold the U.S. government accountable for its role in climate change. It's not just a legal battle; it's about ensuring a habitable planet for future generations, given the U.S.'s major role in global CO2 emissions. 🌱 What’s the issue? The case has faced numerous legal challenges, with the U.S. government making multiple attempts to dismiss it. Despite these obstacles, the case's progress is closely watched for its potential to set a precedent for American environmental and constitutional law. ⚖️ How can you help? The support for Juliana v. United States is crucial. For those looking to join the campaign, visit Our Children's Trust website to find many ways to help this important cause: https://lnkd.in/eNpm3X78

Court sets legal precedent, decides in favor of youths’ right to a safe climate A state judge ruled Montana's greenhouse gases are not “de minimis” but are nationally and globally significant, causing and contributing to climate change and the plaintiffs' injuries. The First Judicial District Court of Montana ruled Monday in favor of 16 young plaintiffs, declaring that the state of Montana violated the youths’ constitutional rights, including their rights to equal protection, dignity, liberty, health and safety, and public trust, which are grounded in their rights to a clean and healthful environment (Held v. State of Montana, August 14, 2023, Seeley, K.). The filing further challenged the constitutionality of Montana’s fossil fuel-based state energy system, which the complaint alleged contributes to climate change. In a 103-page decision, District Court Judge Kathy Seeley articulated critical evidentiary and legal precedent for the right of youth to a safe climate, including that the plaintiffs “have proven that as children and youth, they are disproportionately harmed by fossil fuel pollution and climate impacts. ... injuries (that) will grow increasingly severe and irreversible without science-based actions to address climate change.” This story can be read in its entirety at the Wolters Kluwer Vital Law site (no paywall) at https://lnkd.in/gX8Aru8r. As reported by Suzanne Cosgrove. #ConstitutionalRights #YouthPlaintiffs #ClimateChange #GreenhouseGases #HealthSafety #Montana 

UK Climate Adaptation legal case - hearing announced 18/19 June So, in Oct. 2023 we launched our legal case against DEFRA, for its WOEFUL national adaptation plan - the plan that's meant to address the risks posed by climate change to nature and society, even with emission reduction. Its SO BAD we think it breaches the Climate Change Act 2008, AND the Human Rights Act '98. And so we took action alongside two disabled campaigners who claim that the deficient national plan also violates their #humanrights: to life, home and property. Their stories are compelling, and are examples of the wider problem facing society. One unfortunately finally lost his home to coastal erosion last Christmas - the other has health conditions leaving him susceptible to serious injury during heatwaves. Since then, of course, we've had the v. exciting new judgment from the ECHR in the 'Swiss Seniors' case. Who like one of our co-claimants were at increased risk of harm due to government inaction and their health making them susceptibility to high heat. This now sets the stage even more for an interesting JR trial here in the UK, which may prove to be the first time that new ECHR jurisprudence gets relied on... watch this space. #climateadaptation #climatejustice HUGE thanks to the wonderful legal and campaign team working on this case at Friends of the Earth, but also - crucially - the wonderful David Wolfe Margherita Cornaglia Nikolaus Grubeck Julia Eriksen Rowan Smith - who make this case possible. Press release: https://lnkd.in/egPEw9b3

Together with Katharina Trimmel, Michael Kriechbaum and Thomas Brudermann, I have investigated which arguments people raise against #ClimateAction. We mapped the arguments in five categories that resonate with distributive or procedural justice concerns. In designing and explaining #ClimatePolicy, it is important to refer to these concerns, of which some refer to valid claims. The article is now published and available via the following link: https://lnkd.in/d3qbyjUg

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit has issued an Order setting the briefing schedule for the consolidated lawsuits over the U.S. SEC's Climate Disclosure Rules: - June 14, 2024: Petitioners’ opening brief - June 24, 2024: Intervenors/Amici briefs supporting petitioners - August 5, 2024: Respondent's consolidated response brief - August 15, 2024: Intervenors/Amici briefs supporting respondent - September 3, 2024: Petitioners' reply brief The Court may schedule oral arguments by the end of 2024. In a related development, the Natural Resources Defense Council and the Sierra Club have dropped their lawsuits against the SEC Rules. The NGOs, which argued that the Rules did not go far enough, have opted to withdraw their legal challenges to focus resources on advancing corporate climate disclosures. #climate #ghgemissions #climatedisclosure  

Honoured to act for Friends of the Earth and two individual claimants in this #climate #adaptation judicial review before the UK courts. Following the success in Verein KlimaSeniorinnen before the European Court of Human Rights, it will be interesting to see how courts interpret state obligations relating to climate adaptation. This is particularly so in circumstances where: 🔅 The ECHR has now recognised that states are under a positive obligation to set mitigation targets to achieve net neutrality within the next three decades and to evidence progress towards such targets; 🔅 Most states are not acting ambitiously or fast enough to curb emissions; 🔅 Consequently, and as the ECHR recognised, climate change is posing immediate and real risks to the enjoyment of human rights; 🔅 Adaptation measures are required to curb such risks to rights. What, then, if States fail to implement effective and ambitious adaptation policies? In the UK specifically, what does Part 4 of the Climate Change Act require? What does s. 58 mean? What does the Human Rights Act require? These are amongst the questions raised by this judicial review ⤵

Learn everything about the NY Climate Act's grid reliability and the steps that NY's Public Service Commission may undertake that will have rippling effects through our economy in this column in the New York Law Journal by Karen Meara, chair of CLM's #Energy Sector, and Christopher Rizzo, chair of CLM's #Environmental and Land Use practice. #climatechange #newyorkstate #greenlegislation.  https://lnkd.in/eAVgykxu

In early October, Governor Newsom signed into law two landmark bills, Senate Bill 253 and Senate Bill 261, designed to reinforce California's commitment to tackling climate change and increase transparency of both private and public companies' revenues and financial risk related to climate change. Both bills are part of the state's larger Climate Accountability Package and constitute the first laws of their kind to be implemented in the United States. "The goal is to ultimately drive down corporate carbon emissions," writes Downey Brand associate Monica Browner and counsel Hina Gupta, but "while SB 261 and SB 253 have received much support for their ambitious goals, they are not without challenges and criticisms." However, with global temperatures rising faster than at any point in recorded history, it is not a matter of if, but when and how California businesses will need to focus more on the way their business operations contribute to climate change impacts. Subscribers to the California Land Use Law & Policy Reporter or the Western Water Law & Policy Reporter can read the full article here: https://argentco.com/ #DowneyBrand #landuselaw #climatechange #CARB

For eight years, @thejusticedept has taken extreme legal actions to try to silence the Juliana v. U.S. youth plaintiffs and prevent them from having their day in court. Even after a U.S. District Court judge ruled on June 1st that the youth could once again proceed to trial, the DOJ is continuing to seek delay and dismissal of this youth-led case. In their constitutional climate lawsuit, the youth argue that the federal government’s actions that actively cause and worsen climate change are violating the young plaintiffs’ constitutional rights and failing to protect public trust resources. 📣 ✊ Take action TODAY and tell Attorney General Merrick Garland to end the DOJ’s opposition to the Juliana case proceeding to trial: https://lnkd.in/eSnP_24q (link in bio) #YouthvGov #JulianavUS #ClimateRightsNow #DontMandamus #ClimateLitigation #ClimateAction #ClimateJustice #ClimateSolutions

I write for Scroll Media about the Indian Supreme Court's recognition of the right to be protected against the adverse effects of climate change. While the extension of the fundamental rights to life and equality to include aspects of climate justice seems groundbreaking at first, a closer look reveals a more complicated picture. In the absence of the court delineating the contours of what this right might mean, 'cautious optimism' could be one lens to look at this judgment. Please do give it a read and share any feedback/comments that you might have. #climatechange #supremecourtofindia #climatejustice #climatechangelitigation #righttolife #righttoequality