Abstract
AbstractEven throughout a global pandemic, climate change continues to be a fiercely discussed topic—both politically and legally—the world over. Particularly in light of the many Covid-19 related financial aid programs (including transnational ones) and the associated economic stabilization and reconstruction plans, a sustainable climate policy and legal order should be expected to play a role for an economy that has fallen into a slump. Nevertheless, a lively discussion on how best to achieve climate protection continues to take place in already established systems such as the private law system. Here, as far as climate change is concerned, tort law appears to be the focus of these discussions. The extent to which tort law and the issue of climate change can be brought together is also increasingly being discussed in Germany. This article attempts to shed light on the questions of how tort law could contribute to the mitigation of climate change and how climate change could fit into the law of torts of the German civil law legal system.
Highlights
In light of the many Covid-19 related financial aid programs and the associated economic stabilization and reconstruction plans, a sustainable climate policy and legal order should be expected to play a role for an economy that has fallen into a slump
This article attempts to shed light on the questions of how tort law could contribute to the mitigation of climate change and how climate change could fit into the law of torts of the German civil law legal system
Climate change has been described as the “paradigmatic anti-tort” due to its “diffuse and disparate” origins and its “lagged and latticed” effect; “a collective action problem so pervasive and so complicated as to render at once both all of us and none of us responsible.”[1]. In Germany, the debate is fueled by the fact that the German legislation and jurisdiction have very recently addressed the issue of climate change
Summary
In the broadest sense, is the difference in the earth’s global climate or in regional climates over time. There is a strong body of evidence, based on multiple lines of research, documenting that the climate is changing.[11] The International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has concluded that it is “very likely” that human activity is the cause.[12] With regard to the effects of climate change, it can be said that while some phenomena such as sea-level rise cannot be explained without climate change, it is hardly possible to determine with certainty whether extreme weather events, such as storms or floods—like the recent flooding in western and central Europe or fires like the wildfires in the western United States of America—are attributable to climate change because such events can occur under natural conditions. It was determined to what extent the probability of the occurrence of a concrete event with a specific intensity has increased due to climate change.[13]
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