Climate change litigation is on the rise with more than 2,300 cases having been filed worldwide to date. The International Chamber of Shipping (ICS), has warned that the increasing trend and scope of climate change litigation could herald a new legal risk for shipping companies and directors. 

While some attention has been given to the important question of how climate change litigation could affect the shipping industry, this briefing seeks to explore how climate change litigation is already affecting the shipping industry and reflects on the broader lessons and impacts of such litigation.

This new briefing - Climate change litigation and shipping: taking stock (PDF) - takes stock of existing climate change cases in the shipping sector to date and reflects on key developments. It identifies more than 30 cases targeting the shipping sector, evidence of the mounting legal pressure on the industry to decarbonise. These fall under a range of categories, including pollution and biodiversity impacts, legal action against greenwashing, and alleged failure to adapt critical port infrastructure to climate change impacts.