Book Chapter

Il contenzioso climatico orizzontale: questioni internazionalprivatistiche sulla legge applicabile

  • Ornella Feraci

The paper deals with the growing judicial trend known as ‘private climate change litigation’ (or horizontal climate change litigation), where individuals and/or environmental organizations bring actions against Carbon Majors in order to hold them accountable for their contribution to climate change. The comment provides for a critical appraisal over the applicability of Article 7 of EC Regulation on the law applicable to non-contractual obligations (Rome II) to climate actions instituted before courts of EU Member States and points out the unsuitability of the locus commissi delicti as connecting factor aimed at determining the law applicable to climate damage.

  • Keywords:
  • climate change litigation,
  • conflict-of-laws,
  • Rome II Regulation,
  • environmental damage,
  • climate damage,
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Ornella Feraci

University of Siena, Italy

  1. Alogna, Ivano, Bakker, Christine, and Jean-Pierre Gauci, edited by. 2021. Climate Change Litigation: Global Perspectives. Leiden/Boston: Brill.
  2. Kahl, Wolfgang and Marc-Philippe Weller, edited by. 2021. Climate Change Litigation: A Handbook. Beck/Hart/Nomos: Münich.
  3. Hösli, Andreas, 2021. “Milieudefensie et al. v. Shell: A Tipping Point in Climate Change Litigation against Corporations?” Climate Law. 2: 195-209.
  4. Macchi, Chiara and Josephine Van Zeben, “Business and Human Rights Implications of Climate Change Litigation: Milieudefensie et al. v Royal Dutch Shell.” Rev. Eur. Comp. Int. Environ. Law. 3: 409-15.
  5. Mayer, Benoit, 2022. “The Duty of Care of Fossil-Fuel Producers for Climate Change Mitigation: Milieudefensie v. Royal Dutch Shell District Court of The Hague (The Netherlands).” Transnat’l Environ. Law. 2: 407-18.
  6. Minnerop, Petra, 2019. “Integrating the ‘Duty of Care’ under the European Convention on Human Rights and the Science and Law of Climate Change: the Decision of The Hague Court of Appeal in the Urgenda Case.” Journal of Energy and Natural Resources Law. 2: 149-79.
  7. Scovazzi, Tullio, 2019. “L’interpretazione e l’applicazione ambientalista della Convenzione europea dei diritti umani, con particolare riguardo al caso Urgenda.” Rivista giuridica dell’ambiente. 619-33.
  8. Passarini, Federica, 2020. “Ambiente, CEDU e cambiamento climatico, nella decisione della Corte Suprema dei Paesi Bassi nel caso Urgenda.” Diritti umani e diritto internazionale. 377.
  9. Mayer, Benoit, 2023. “The Contribution of Urgenda to the Mitigation of Climate Change.” Journal of Environmental Law. 2: 167-84.
  10. Meguro, Maiko, 2020. “State of the Netherlands v. Urgenda Foundation.” American Journal of International Law. 4: 729-35.
  11. Marino, Silvia, 2026. “Il danno all’ambiente come bene comune e la disciplina della responsabilità: profili di diritto internazionale privato.” Rivista giuridica dell’ambiente. 1: 3-40.
  12. Spier, Jaap, 2020. “The ‘Strongest’ Climate Ruling Yet: The Dutch Supreme Court’s Urgenda Judgment.” Netherland International Law Review. 2: 319-91.
  13. NollKaemper, André, 2024. “Lessons of a Landmark Lost. The Judgment of the Hague Court of Appeal in Shell v Milieudefensie.” Verfassungsblog.
  14. Benini, Caterina, 2024. “Sui giudizi di responsabilità civile intentati contro i c.d. global Carbon Majors.” Jus. 2: 183-209.
  15. van Calster, Geert, 2022. “Lex ecologia. On Applicable law for Environ. poluution (Article 7 Rome II): a pinnacle of business and human rights as well as climate litigation.” IPRax. 5: 441-9.
  16. Boskovic, Olivera, 2024. “La localisation du dommage en droit international privé, La localisation du dommage en droit international privé.” In Localisation of Damage in Private International Law edited by Boskovic, Olivera. 3-67. Leiden-Boston: Brill.
  17. Y. Nishitani, Yuko. 2022. “Localisation of Damage in Private International Law and Challenges of Climate Change Litigation.” Int’l Bus. L.J. 707.
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  • Publication Year: 2026
  • Pages: 49-62

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  • Publication Year: 2026

Chapter Information

Chapter Title

Il contenzioso climatico orizzontale: questioni internazionalprivatistiche sulla legge applicabile

Authors

Ornella Feraci

Language

Italian

DOI

10.36253/979-12-215-1090-4.08

Peer Reviewed

Publication Year

2026

Copyright Information

© 2026 Author(s)

Content License

CC BY-SA 4.0

Metadata License

CC0 1.0

Bibliographic Information

Book Title

Il contenzioso climatico nazionale e internazionale: questioni aperte e nuove tendenze

Book Subtitle

Atti del Convegno tenutosi presso il Dipartimento di Giurisprudenza dell’Università degli Studi di Siena l'11 novembre 2024

Editors

Ornella Feraci

Peer Reviewed

Number of Pages

166

Publication Year

2026

Copyright Information

© 2026 Author(s)

Content License

CC BY-SA 4.0

Metadata License

CC0 1.0

Publisher Name

Firenze University Press, USiena Press

DOI

10.36253/979-12-215-1090-4

ISBN Print

979-12-215-1089-8

eISBN (pdf)

979-12-215-1090-4

eISBN (epub)

979-12-215-1091-1

Series Title

Strumenti del Dipartimento di Giurisprudenza di Siena

Series ISSN

3035-5656

Series E-ISSN

3035-5842

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