Climate policy: Germany’s highest civil court clarifies the boundaries between legislative discretion and judicial intervention

BGH rejects claims for early combustion engine phase-out and clarifies the limits of judicial intervention, legislative discretion and corporate responsibility.

On 23 March 2026, the German Federal Court of Justice (Bundesgerichtshof, BGH) dismissed civil claims seeking to force two major car manufacturers into an early phase-out of combustion engines (No. VI ZR 334/23 and VI ZR 365/23). The judgment marks an important milestone for climate litigation in Germany and provides key guidance on the limits of judicial intervention in climate policy.

The car manufacturer decision of the BGH: Climate protection is primarily the legislature's responsibility

In the recent BGH case, the claimants—executive directors of a German NGO—essentially argued that there is a legal obligation of two car manufacturers to cease placing combustion-engine vehicles on the market. The claim was based on the argument that selling combustion-engine vehicles would inevitably compel the State to adopt