Jessica Simor KC: Judicial Activism in the Age of Global Warming

Ken Macdonald and Tim Owen speak to Jessica Simor KC, an acclaimed specialist in public and regulatory law, EU law, competition law and human rights law. 

The episode discusses the issue of whether litigation, whether before the European Court of Human Rights or domestic courts can be effective in addressing the challenge presented by climate change. They highlight two landmark cases in which Jessica Simor acted - one against the Swiss government and one against the UK government. The Swiss case saw a group of elderly Swiss women, bringing the case that they suffered personal health issues caused by heatwaves, and used litigation to hold their government accountable for climate change. 

Tim and Ken further explore the UK case in the High Court in London recently which was brought by Friends of the Earth, Client Earth and the Good Law Project. Mr Justice Sheldon found the government was found to be falling short in meeting its obligations under the Climate Change Act 2008. The judicial review judgement held that the government had breached its duty under the Climate Change Act 2008 to adopt policies and proposals to enable legally binding carbon reduction targets to be met. Both cases marked a significant victory for climate activists.

A great episode around the urgency of combating climate change, the pressure on national governments for climate action and the influence of the Paris agreement on court decisions.