Lewis & Clark Law Review
First Page
407
Abstract
Corporate climate litigation has emerged as one of the most dynamic and high-profile tools for addressing the private sector’s role in the climate crisis. While much of the scholarship and public debate has centered on cases in the United States and Europe, litigation targeting corporations in the Global South—particularly Brazil—has grown rapidly, both in volume and significance. Brazil now ranks among the world’s top jurisdictions for corporate climate damage claims. These suits have pioneered methods for quantifying climate damages, often from illegal deforestation, and have tested the reach of the civil liability regime in novel ways. This Article offers the first comprehensive analysis of corporate climate litigation in Brazil, situating it within global trends. It examines the actors, causes of action, liability regimes, and remedies shaping this emerging body of law, and evaluates the potential for litigation to influence corporate behavior in high-emissions sectors. By contextualizing Brazil’s experience within broader patterns of climate accountability, this Article contributes to a growing body of work on transnational climate litigation and highlights lessons for both Global South and Global North jurisdictions confronting the challenge of corporate climate accountability.
Recommended Citation
Maria A. Tigre & Mariana B. Cirne,
From Chainsaws to Courtrooms: Corporate Climate Litigation and Deforestation in Brazil,
30
Lewis & Clark L. Rev.
407
(2026).
Available at:
https://lawcommons.lclark.edu/lclr/vol30/iss2/7
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