One of the most well-known cases of 2023 was the Montana ruling, where a judge sided with young residents who said state officials had infringed their right to a clean and healthy environment.One of the most well-known cases of 2023 was the Montana ruling, where a judge sided with young residents who said state officials had infringed their right to a clean and healthy environment.
One of the most rapidly growing forms of litigation is over “climate-washing” – when companies are accused of misrepresenting their progress towards environmental targets – and the analysis found that 47 such cases were filed against companies and governments in 2023. More than 30 cases in 2023 concerned the “polluter pays” principle, whereby companies are held accountable for climate damage caused by high greenhouse gas emissions. The authors also highlighted six “turning off the taps” cases, which challenge the flow of finance to areas which hinder climate goals.
Climate litigation cases were filed for the first time in Panama and Portugal in 2023. This means that 55 countries have now recorded climate cases, with a growing number of litigation cases arising in the global south, which accounts for about 8% of all cases.