A Paris court is expected to rule Thursday on a significant climate change lawsuit that could compel French energy company TotalEnergies to reduce its oil and gas production. The decision comes as France and other parts of Europe grapple with record-high temperatures.
The lawsuit, initiated by a coalition of non-governmental organizations including Notre Affaire à Tous, Sherpa, ZEA, and France Nature Environnement, argues that TotalEnergies is violating a 2017 law known as the corporate duty of vigilance. This law requires companies to take measures to prevent human rights abuses and environmental risks stemming from their operations. It marks the first time this law is being applied in the context of climate change.
Environmental groups claim TotalEnergies is one of the largest historical emitters of greenhouse gases. They are seeking a court order for the company to decrease its oil production by 37 percent and its gas production by 25 percent by 2030, and to halt all new fossil fuel projects.
The impending ruling occurs amidst a severe heatwave across Europe. Punishing temperatures have prompted red alerts in countries like the United Kingdom and Spain, affecting tens of millions of people. Iconic landmarks, including the Eiffel Tower and the Louvre Museum in Paris, have adjusted visiting hours, and school and transportation schedules have been disrupted across the continent.
Human-caused climate change is increasingly linked to extreme weather events, and projections from the U.N. climate agency suggest the next five years are likely to set new global heat records. Europe is identified as the world's fastest-warming continent, with temperatures rising at twice the global average since the 1980s, according to the European Union's Copernicus Climate Change Service. The World Health Organization's Europe office recently reported that over 200,000 people in Europe died from heat-related causes in the past four years, with most of these deaths being preventable.
This case adds to a growing number of legal actions concerning climate change. In 2024, the European Court of Human Rights ruled that countries must enhance protections for their citizens against the consequences of climate change. Last year, the International Court of Justice stated that countries could be in violation of international law if they fail to take adequate measures to protect the planet from climate change. A notable precedent was set in 2019 when the Netherlands' Supreme Court recognized protection from the effects of climate change as a human right and affirmed the government's duty to safeguard its citizens.