Nouvelles diverses

C’est en tous les cas le sens de l’intervention de M. Cox (voir l’article du The Globe and Mail : « Canadian courts could face climate-change cases in wake of Dutch ruling », 15 septembre 2015). Sur la base de l’exemple néerlandais où le gouvernement a été condamné pour ne pas avoir protégé ses citoyens contre l’augmentation de température, M. Cox a fait part du risque que le gouvernement canadien se trouve lui-même condamné notamment en raison du comportement de ses entreprises.

Canada could one day face a lawsuit such as the one that saw a court in The Hague order the Netherlands government to slash greenhouse gases, the lawyer who spearheaded the groundbreaking legal action says. (…)

Mr. Cox said in an interview that the Canadian government is a good target for this new kind of climate-change litigation, given Canada’s reputation in recent years as an environmental bad apple for its oil sands and its withdrawal from the Kyoto Protocol: “I think it’s a very beautiful country, but on the climate-change issue, there is a lot to be done.” (…)

Mr. Cox’s victory has already inspired copycats in other countries, including Belgium. Some Canadian legal experts say the idea that a Canadian court could make a similar ruling is not as far-fetched as it might sound. But it would still be an uphill battle.

However, legal observers say private companies, too, should brace themselves for more climate-change-related litigation of all kinds in the wake of the Dutch ruling.

À la prochaine…

Ivan Tchotourian