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ARTICLE · 27 JUNE 2022

ClientEarth v Shell – The Beginning For Climate Change Litigation In The UK?

RWK Goodman
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Climate change litigation has been on the rise since 2015. A report published by the London School of Economics and Political Science in 2021 found that globally 1,006 climate-related cases had been filed between 2015 and 2021.

United KingdomEnvironment
Tom Llewellyn
Tom Llewellyn
Georgina Jones
Georgina Jones

Climate change litigation has been on the rise since 2015. A report published by the London School of Economics and Political Science in 2021 found that globally 1,006 climate-related cases had been filed between 2015 and 2021. This is a noticeable increase on the 834 cases filed between 1986 and 2014.

To date, the majority of cases are bought against governments. For example, ClientEarth are suing the UK Government over its net zero strategy and potential breaches of their duties under the Climate Change Act 2008. This hearing is due to take place in early June 2022.

In March 2022, ClientEarth, as a shareholder of Shell Plc, announced that they were taking a derivative action against Shell's board of directors for mismanaging climate risk and failing to prepare for the transition to net-zero. They have based their claims on breach of duties under sections 172 (the duty to promote the success of the company) and 174 (the duty to exercise reasonable care and

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