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ICJ climate ruling opens floodgates for billions in pollution payouts

The UN court’s opinion defining greenhouse gas emissions as ‘internationally wrongful acts’ argues for climate finance to become a legal obligation for the main polluting countries

The ruling by the UN’s top court that countries may be held legally accountable for their greenhouse gas emissions and the environmental damage they cause could help reshape the arguments on global climate finance. The advisory opinion by the UN’s International Court of Justice on 23 July put the responsibility for environmental damage onto states, reinforcing the shift to seeing climate finance as a legal obligation, instead of voluntary assistance. Although it applies solely to governments, it will influence jurisprudence around the responsibility of individuals and companies for climate costs. It will also mean that negotiations over climate finance will become still more complex and contested internationally.

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