European Court of Human Rights delivers ruling in case filed by Portuguese youths over harmful effects of climate change

The Grand Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) delivered its decision today in a case brought by six Portuguese young persons against 33 states, including Finland, concerning the harmful effects of climate change. The decision is final.

The ECtHR declared the case inadmissible. The applicants were not within the jurisdiction of the respondent states other than Portugal. As regards Portugal, the applicants had not exhausted domestic remedies. As conserns Ukraine the application was struck out in accordance with the applicants’ request.

In their complaint, the applicants claimed that the effects of climate change violate their right to life (Article 2) and right to respect for private and family life (Article 8) guaranteed in the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) when examined in the light of the Paris Agreement on Climate Change, as well as prohibition of discrimination (Article 14) together with the aforementioned rights. The respondent states are the 27 EU Member States, the United Kingdom, Switzerland, Norway, Russia, Turkey and Ukraine.

Read the decision on the ECtHR website(Link to another website.).

Today, the ECtHR also delivered rulings in two other climate cases: Verein KlimaSeniorinnen Schweiz and Others v. Switzerland and Carême v. France.