Scope of the Database
The present database is run by researchers within the CRRP at the University of Zurich (see “About“). It collects litigation related to anthropogenic climate change and human or constitutional rights. As a result, it excludes cases that relate to climate change but not to human or constitutional rights (i.e. cases concerning private law, international law, criminal law, environmental law, shareholder responsibility, tort law, etc., without any link to rights). Information on these cases is available via other climate data providers (see “Links“). By contrast, and although this distinction is not water-tight, the purpose of the present database is to provide data specific to the “rights turn” within climate litigation, and to provide a searchable, filterable database of relevant cases in this context.
Methodology
The database includes cases from any adjudicatory body in any jurisdiction, aiming to provide an increasingly comprehensive overview of rights-based litigation relevant to climate change. Database entries may concern ongoing cases, and these are updated as necessary to feature new developments.
The database does not just include cases in which “success” was achieved, or cases which advocate for stronger climate protection; instead, it includes also cases that fall under the broader definition of “just transition litigation”.
A Note on Keywords
Cases are tagged with keywords and the rights at stake. These filters are meant to assist users of the database in identifying cases relevant to a given topic, and are accordingly indicative. For example, the keyword “gender/women-led cases” is a loose category that neither indicates that all applicants in a given case necessarily identify as women, nor that other cases may not be about gender or women-led.