A pathway for climate change litigation in Canada – CBA National Magazine
September 11, 2017
Earlier this summer the Supreme Court of Canada handed down two rulings clarifying how regulatory bodies, such as the National Energy Board, can fulfill the Crown’s duty to consult. The Clyde River and Chippewas of the Thames First Nation rulings are noteworthy in that the top court has recognized that evaluating cumulative effects of a proposed project and its impact on existing aboriginal and treaty rights can inform the scope of that duty. That raises the question of the scope of the duty to consult include giving proper consideration to the impacts of a project on the climate.
Climate change litigation has yet to reach the Supreme Court, but it has made headway in a growing number of jurisdictions, namely in Norway, Pakistan, the United States and the Philippines. And now our top court appears to have offered a pathway for similar litigation in Canada.
