New Zealand moves to halt lawsuits over climate damage

WELLINGTON: New Zealand will change the law to prevent courts from holding companies liable for "climate change damage" linked to greenhouse gas emissions, justice minister Paul Goldsmith said on Tuesday.

Goldsmith cited a lawsuit launched by Indigenous Maori climate activist Michael Smith, who is seeking to hold six prominent New Zealand companies responsible for environmental harms linked to climate change. He said such cases were "creating uncertainty in business confidence".

New Zealand would change the law to "prevent findings of liability" for "climate change damage or harm caused by greenhouse gas emissions", Goldsmith said.

The ruling coalition holds a parliamentary majority, making passage likely once legislation is introduced.

"The courts are not the right place to resolve claims of harm from climate change, and tort law is not well-suited to respond to a problem like climate change which involves a range of complex environmental, economic and social factors," Goldsmith said.

Tort law deals with civil cases in which people seek compensation for harmful or negligent actions.

Climate activist Smith said the government's announcement was "an affront to democracy". "If parliament can cancel a live court case, then no legal claim is secure at all, once it becomes politically inconvenient," he told national broadcaster Radio New Zealand.

Smith's case named some of New Zealand's biggest and best-known companies, including dairy farming giant Fonterra.

New Zealand's right-leaning government has unravelled a string of environmentally friendly policies since coming to power in 2023. It has cancelled a clean car discount incentivising electric vehicle uptake, reversed a ban on oil and gas exploration, and begun a fast-track scheme for mining permits.

From South Korea to Germany, a growing body of litigation around the world is pushing courts to take climate change more seriously.

New Zealand is currently facing a separate legal challenge over its emissions targets.