On appeal of a strike out decision, the Court gives the plaintiff “his day in court” to argue that corporates owe a common law duty of care in tort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
By Sophie J. Lamb KC and Stephanie Forrest
On 7 February 2024, the Supreme Court of New Zealand decided to allow a novel climate change claim to proceed to trial. In Smith v. Fonterra, the Supreme Court reversed the earlier decision of its Court of Appeal
The Airports National Policy Statement is ruled illegal as a result of government failure to take account of its Paris Agreement commitments.
By Paul A. Davies and Michael D. Green
In R (Plan B Earth and Others) v. Secretary of State for Transport and others, the Court of Appeal in England (the Court) heard an appeal in relation to a judicial review of the UK government’s Airports National Policy Statement (ANPS). The UK government had effectively provided its support for the construction of the third runway at Heathrow under the ANPS, which was the subject of appeal by a number of local authorities and environmental NGOs. In the first instance, these local authorities and NGOs were unsuccessful. However, the Court determined that, in making the ANPS, the Transport Minister had not taken into account the UK’s commitments in the UNFCCC Paris Agreement (the Paris Agreement). Therefore, the ANPS was considered illegal.