Harj Narulla instructed by Solomon Islands in the International Court of Justice advisory proceedings on climate change

Harj Narulla has been acting as counsel for Solomon Islands in the landmark climate change proceedings before the International Court of Justice (ICJ), the Request for an Advisory Opinion on the Obligations of States with Respect to Climate Change. 

Earlier this week, the Registrar of the ICJ accepted the written statement of Solomon Islands, which addresses the questions put to the Court by the United Nations General Assembly, adopted in Resolution A/77/L.58. 

The Court will provide an advisory opinion on the obligations of States under international law to protect the climate system and the environment from anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions. The Court will also consider the legal consequences for States if they are in breach of these obligations in relation to climate change. In particular, the Court will be addressing State responsibility for harm caused to small island developing States, such as Solomon Islands. 

The case will consider broad areas of law, including international human rights law, international environmental law, general and customary international law, and the law of the sea. 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 worked across these three cases, previously advising an intergovernmental organisation in relation to ITLOS, and will be at the hearings of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights in Barbados and Brazil.

Harj is instructed by Solomon Islands Attorney-General John Muria, Principal Crown Counsel Freliz Fakarii, and the Pro Bono team at DLA Piper. 

Harj recently chaired an event on the climate change advisory opinions, which can be viewed here.