Lacking Rights and Justice in a Burning World: The Case for Granting Standing to Future Generations in Climate Change Litigation

Abstract

The exacerbation of climate change effects has rendered the legal adaptation of granting future generations standing in climate change litigation, necessary to achieve intergenerational justice and to protect their human rights. International law and norms do not operate in a legal vacuum. Instead, they possess the evolutionary quality to respond to societal shifts specifically seen in climate change action. This transient quality is greatly questioned in the debate surrounding the current legal lacuna concerning the lack of legal recognition for future generations in climate change actions. This has consequential effects on intergenerational justice and their human rights. Whilst international law has implemented a number of climate change mitigation strategies, these are insufficient in protecting future generations. The granting of standing in climate change litigation adequately complements the current approaches in resolving the lacuna in the law between theory and practice.

Keywords

• International private law
• international climate change law
• environmental law
• tort law
• human rights
• legal standing
• liability