In Their Own Words: Plaintiffs & Their Lawyers Speak About Youth Climate Cases, Part 4 – Juliana v US

Children and youth in Canada and the US are suing their governments for contributing to the climate emergency. Mathur v Ontario was the first such case in Canada to be decided on the merits and is currently under appeal at the Ontario Court of Appeal. La Rose v Canada was dismissed at a preliminary stage but was revived by the Federal Court of Appeal in December, 2023. Farther south, in August, 2023 Held v Montana became the world’s first children’s climate case to be won after a full trial with live witnesses and cross-examination, while Juliana v USA has been making its way through the US courts for years and recently passed the latest hurdle on its way to trial. Youth plaintiffs in these cases, and their lawyers, will share their stories of seeking climate accountability for young people and future generations through the courts.

Free. Open to the public. Lunch. CPD credit for BC lawyers. Go to the event page for a particular session to learn more about that week's session and RSVP. 

About Juliana v. US

In 2015, twenty-one young Americans filed a constitutional climate lawsuit against the US government, asserting that, because of the government’s affirmative actions contributing to climate change, it has violated the youngest generation’s constitutional rights to life, liberty, and property and has failed to protect essential public trust resources. In 2016, rejecting the government's motion to strike the claim, Judge Ann L. Aiken declared that “the right to a climate system capable of sustaining human life is fundamental to a free and ordered society.” Since then, the Department of Justice's long string of attempts to dismiss and delay the case has meant that Juliana has yet to make it to trial. A June 2023 ruling put the case back on track, and in December 2023 Judge Aiken denied the government’s latest attempt to derail the case and ordered the parties to meet to schedule the case for trial. If this happens, it will be the first climate trial in federal court in U.S. history, following closely on the heels of the country's first climate trial in state court, Held v. Montana--the subject of our previous webinar.