Juliana v. US (CA, 17 January 2020), on admissibility, dismissed for lack of standing
Laura Burgers, “Should Judges Make Climate Change Law?”
"What scholars referred to as a climate change litigation ‘explosion’ in 2015 has today become an established movement which is unlikely to stop in the near future: worldwide, over a thousand lawsuits have been launched regarding responsibility for the dangers of climate change. Since the beginning of this trend in transnational climate litigation scholars have warned that the separation of powers is threatened where judges interfere with the politically hot issue of climate change. This article uses Jürgen Habermas's political theory on deliberative democracy to reconstruct the tension between law and politics generated by these lawsuits. This reconstruction affords a better understanding of the implications of climate change litigation: while the role of the judiciary as such remains unchanged, the trend is likely to influence the democratic legitimacy of judicial lawmaking on climate change, as it indicates an increasing realization that a sound environment is a constitutional value and is therefore a prerequisite for democracy."
“JetBlue plans to go completely carbon neutral on all U.S. flights” (Washington Post)
“Guardian to ban advertising from fossil fuel firms”
“Davos 2020: Ursula von der Leyen warns China to price carbon or face tax” (Financial Times)
George Monbiot, “Let’s abandon climate targets, and do something completely different” (Guardian)
Negotiated targets on climate change mitigation are ineffective: States do not seek to exceed their unambitious targets when they could. An obligation of conduct – to do the maximum, based on a standard of due diligence – could be more effective.
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/jan/29/climate-targets-committee-on-climate-change-report
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/jan/29/climate-targets-committee-on-climate-change-report
“Study finds shock rise in levels of potent greenhouse gas” (Guardian)
Michael Mehling, Harro van Asselt, Kati Kulovesi, Elisa Morgera, “Teaching Climate Law: Trends, Methods and Outlook”
Journal of Environmental Law (forthcoming)
Abstract: "Climate change presents unique challenges for legal education. As a subject matter, it is technically complex and normatively contested, evolves at a dynamic pace and crosses established boundaries between academic disciplines, branches of law, and levels of jurisdiction. Still, it has, by now, firmly entered the legal curriculum through general and specialised courses, and is also increasingly featured in courses on neighbouring areas of law. This article offers an initial, exploratory survey of the current state of climate law education, including courses, degree programmes, and teaching material, as well as teaching methods and the role of interdisciplinary approaches. Based on this survey, it identifies broader trends in the still nascent field, including a tendency towards consolidation and specialisation. Climate law will evolve over time, as will approaches to its instruction. For future climate lawyers, practical skills and sound judgment will therefore weigh more heavily than exhaustive command of doctrinal detail. Interactive teaching formats and experiential learning are therefore recommended as integral elements of climate law education, as is cautious exploration of an interdisciplinary approach to the topic."
Abstract: "Climate change presents unique challenges for legal education. As a subject matter, it is technically complex and normatively contested, evolves at a dynamic pace and crosses established boundaries between academic disciplines, branches of law, and levels of jurisdiction. Still, it has, by now, firmly entered the legal curriculum through general and specialised courses, and is also increasingly featured in courses on neighbouring areas of law. This article offers an initial, exploratory survey of the current state of climate law education, including courses, degree programmes, and teaching material, as well as teaching methods and the role of interdisciplinary approaches. Based on this survey, it identifies broader trends in the still nascent field, including a tendency towards consolidation and specialisation. Climate law will evolve over time, as will approaches to its instruction. For future climate lawyers, practical skills and sound judgment will therefore weigh more heavily than exhaustive command of doctrinal detail. Interactive teaching formats and experiential learning are therefore recommended as integral elements of climate law education, as is cautious exploration of an interdisciplinary approach to the topic."
Felicity Deane, Anna Huggins and Md Saiful Karim, “Measuring, monitoring, reporting and verification of shipping emissions: Evaluating transparency and answerability”
Forthcoming in Review of European, Comparative and International Environmental Law.