Lawyers, bar associations, and law societies have an important but not fully recognized role to play in achieving the net zero goal in the Paris Agreement. Over the last few years, a unique collaboration involving the American Bar Association (ABA), the International Bar Association (IBA), the Brazilian Bar Association (OAB), and the Law Society of England and Wales (LSEW) has begun to discuss the role of lawyers in combatting climate change and share best practices. I participate in this collaboration through the ABA. My purpose here is to explain the important role of lawyers, describe what ..read more

    In Verein Klimaseniorinnen Schweiz and Others v Switzerland (“KlimaSeniorinnen”), the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) makes many general statements about the nature of climate change and different actors’ roles in addressing it. For example, ‘the Court notes that climate change is one of the most pressing issues of our times’ (para 410), thus conveying to the public that the ECtHR takes the issue very seriously. There are also general statements regarding the separation of powers and the role of courts (e.g., ‘Judicial intervention, including by this Court, cannot replace ..read more

Image using AI, Ilmi Granoff In recent years, climate experts and even regulators have increased attention on the financial sector as a driver of both emissions and capital formation in the low-carbon economy. There has been growing emphasis on “aligning” capital allocation by financial institutions to the transition to net zero greenhouse gases (GHG) in the hopes of both minimizing the disruption of the transition to efficient capital formation and accelerating the transition.  Any approach to aligning financial capital with the net-zero transition must take into account that the transit ..read more

A key and underrated aspect of the recent triad of climate rulings of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) is that the ECtHR has brought to the fore the role of trade-related greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in states’ carbon footprints. While most international climate agreements focus on the reduction of domestic GHG emissions, in the Verein KlimaSeniorinnen Schweiz and Others v. Switzerland Judgment (KlimaSeniorinnen), the ECtHR found ‘attributable’ to Switzerland the GHG emissions taking place abroad, ‘embedded’ into goods (and possibly services) ‘consumed’ in Switzerland. As I will a ..read more

Amid governments’ unwillingness to effectively curb climate change, the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) has delivered a bold judgment in favor of a viable future for all in the case KlimaSeniorinnen and Others v. Switzerland (“KlimaSeniorinnen”). The ruling made judicial history. Many claim for the better, as it’s widely hailed as a landmark ruling and a victory for climate justice. However, not all are welcoming this turn of events. The Energy Secretary of the United Kingdom, Claire Coutinho, expressed her concerns about the verdict on X: “How we tackle climate change affects our econ ..read more

This photo shows the inside of the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) in Strasbourg, eastern France, on February 7, 2019. (Photo by FREDERICK FLORIN / AFP) (Photo credit should read FREDERICK FLORIN/AFP via Getty Images) Across Europe, activists of all ages have taken to the streets to pressure their governments to take effective action against climate change. As domestic decision-makers failed them, they knocked at Strasbourg’s door. Three generations of right-holders turned to the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR): senior women, young citizens, and a middle-aged ex-mayor. They compla ..read more

The judgment of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) in the case Verein KlimaSeniorinnen v. Switzerland is a striking example of the Paris effect: the influence of the non-binding collective goals of the Paris Agreement (PA) on the interpretation of domestic constitutional law or international human rights law in climate litigation. In its ground-breaking and bold ruling, the ECtHR established positive obligations for Switzerland to take steps to protect against the adverse effects of climate change on the enjoyment of the right to private and family life enshrined in Art. 8 European Co ..read more

Image by Maxim Tolchinskiy (Unsplash) In November of 2022, when the Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Land Management (“BLM”) proposed new rules  to control venting, flaring, and leaks from oil and gas leases on federal land (the “Fossil Fuel Waste Rule”), they noted that these leasing rules would have an enormous ancillary climate benefit. While the proposed rule had been designed to protect taxpayer royalties from public lands mineral leases, BLM expected that, in complying with the rule, oil and gas companies would eliminate $427 million per year of climate-related harms. However ..read more

A new report published today by the Sabin Center examines the laws governing international transport of carbon dioxide for sequestration. We focus, specifically, on the shipping of carbon dioxide that was captured in Europe to the United States for sequestration there. Much of the report would also be relevant to the shipping of carbon dioxide between other regions, though domestic laws at either end of the trip may also be relevant. The issue of cross-border shipping of carbon dioxide for sequestration is of academic and practical interest. As previously reported on this blog, there were impo ..read more

Vincent Nolette joins our team at the Sabin Center for Climate Change Law as the Equitable Cities Climate Law Fellow. His work will support the Center’s Cities Climate Law Initiative and include research on city-level law and policy at the intersection of climate and racial wealth equity. Before joining the Sabin Center, Vincent served as an Excelsior Legal Fellow at the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation and was also a litigation associate at Carter Ledyard & Milburn LLP.  Before law school, he worked on the Human Rights Measurement Initiative (HRMI) in Wellingt ..read more