The Justiciability of Climate Change: AComparison of US and Canadian Approaches

Climate change-related disputes, which often include novel, complex,or politically sensitive matters, have experienced a mixed reception by the courts. Defendants both in Canada and the United States have raised the issue of justiciabilitythe question of whether a matter is of the quality or state of being appropriate or suitable for review by a court-with some success in attempts to have these cases summarily dismissed. The author reviews the types ofclimate change cases that have been launched, examines the US and Canadian laws of justiciability analyzes the.paths in which the caselaw regarding justiciability in these countries is headed, and suggests how these developments will impact future climate change cases. This paper finds that Canadian courts may be increasingly using justiciability as a means to avoid addressing climate change issues-just as US courts may be beginning to take a more progressive approach.