Harj Narulla to appear before International Court of Justice in landmark advisory opinion proceedings on climate change

Harj Narulla will be presenting oral arguments for the Solomon Islands at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) this week, in the historic advisory opinion proceedings on climate change. 

Between 2-13 December the ICJ will be hearing submissions from 98 States and 12 intergovernmental organisations on the obligations of States in relation to climate change. The proceedings are the largest of their kind on the Court’s history. 

After a unanimous request by the UN General Assembly on 29 March 2023 in resolution 77/276, the Court will be answering the following two questions:

(1) What are the obligations of States under international law to ensure the protection of the climate system and other parts of the environment from anthropogenic emissions of greenhouse gases for States and for present and future generations?

(2) What are the legal consequences under these obligations for States where they, by their acts and omissions, have caused significant harm to the climate system and other parts of the environment?

The case is occurring in the context of related advisory proceedings on climate change before the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea and the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, and the Court is expected to provide a definitive interpretation of the law developed in these proceedings. Harj has been instructed in each case, and attended hearings in Barbados and Brazil earlier in the year for the Inter-American proceedings. 

Harj will be speaking at 4:00pm CET on Thursday 5 December, livestreamed on the UN website. He will be presenting Solomon Islands’ case alongside the Solomon Islands Attorney General John Muria. 

Harj is instructed by the Attorney General’s Office and the Pro Bono team at DLA Piper. His comments on the case have been covered by media here and he has spoken publicly on the proceedings here, here, and here.