A report published today, Thursday, indicates that "the number of climate-related lawsuits has more than doubled in five years, with millions affected by severe consequences ranging from dwindling water resources to extreme heat waves." According to the report from the United Nations Environment Programme and Columbia University in New York, approximately 2,180 climate-related lawsuits have been filed in the past five years across 65 jurisdictions. The report noted that "by 2017, there were 884 recorded cases in 24 jurisdictions."
Maria Antonia Tigre, a specialist in global climate litigation at the Sabin Center at Columbia, stated: "We are witnessing a huge increase in the number of cases," pointing out that "the number of cases filed annually has doubled in the past five years." While the United States still holds the largest share of cases with over 1,500 lawsuits, other countries are also seeing increases. The report noted that about "17 percent of the cases were filed in developing countries."
Thousands of elderly Swiss women have filed a case with the European Court of Human Rights, stating that their government’s insufficient climate efforts violate their human rights. Many of the lawsuits involve accusations against companies for greenwashing, which misleads consumers about companies' environmental practices, or call for greater transparency regarding climate issues. Some seek to hold governments accountable for not enforcing climate-related laws and policies.
