Cambridge Handbook on Climate Litigation

Cambridge Handbook on Climate Litigation

Contributor Roles

Lisa Benjamin, Jeffrey Bain Faculty Scholar and Associate Professor of Law at Lewis & Clark Law School, co-authored Chapter 16: Causation.

Description

With over 2,500 climate-related cases filed worldwide, climate litigation is rapidly evolving but lacks a comprehensive resource for guiding judicial approaches. The Cambridge Handbook on Climate Litigation fills this void, offering an authoritative guide to climate litigation’s complex landscape. Judges, lawyers, and scholars will find insights into how courts globally have addressed recurring issues, from causation to human rights impacts. Building on the rich transnational judicial dialogue already occurring within climate litigation, the Handbook distils emerging best practices with an eye towards the progressive development of the field. Its unique focus on replicable strategies in case law makes it a strategic resource for shaping the future of climate litigation.

Chapter 16 on Causation explores the challenges of proving causation in an interconnected system like the climate, where multiple actors contribute to the overall impacts. The authors highlight the significance of probabilistic approaches, recognising that establishing direct causation can be challenging due to the nature of climate change and the cumulative nature of greenhouse gas emissions. In their exploration of emerging best practices, the authors underscore the growing recognition among courts of the need for nuanced interpretations of causation requirements in climate litigation. They highlight innovative judicial strategies that utilise scientific evidence and expert testimony to assess the contribution of specific actors to climate impacts, even in the absence of direct causation. They emphasise the importance of interdisciplinary collaboration between legal and scientific experts to navigate the complexities of causation in climate cases. By incorporating and further developing these emerging best practices, courts can facilitate an accurate and fair distribution of responsibilities through the cases they adjudicate.

ISBN

9781009409179

Publication Date

2025

Document Type

Contribution to Book

Publisher

Cambridge University Press

Editors

Margaretha Wewerinke-Singh and Sarah Mead

First Page

391

Section Title

Causation

City

Cambridge, United Kingdom

Keywords

climate litigation, attribution science, causation, human rights, transnational judicial dialogue, causation, greenhouse gas emissions

Disciplines

Courts | Environmental Law | International Law | Law | Law and Society | Litigation | Science and Technology Law

Cambridge Handbook on Climate Litigation

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