The Supreme Court of Canada will say on Thursday whether it accepts to hear the appeal of the organization Environnement Jeunesse, which wishes to bring a class action against the Canadian government, which it accuses of not doing enough to curb the climate crisis.
Posted at 3:55 p.m.
Environnement Jeunesse (ENJEU) had asked the Superior Court of Quebec in 2018 for permission to exercise such an action on behalf of all Quebecers aged 35 and under, “the generation that is likely to be most affected by climate change. », affirmed its director, Catherine Gauthier.
Judge Gary Morrison had dismissed the request in 2019, considering that the age group targeted by the organization was subjective.
The Quebec Court of Appeal upheld the decision in 2021.
ISSUE hopes the highest court in the land agrees to consider the case, then reverses previous rulings.
The organization believes that the Canadian government is intentionally endangering the lives of its youngest citizens by doing “virtually nothing” to reduce its greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.
In addition to seeking a statement claiming that the Canadian government’s behavior violates the rights of young people in order to force it to rectify the situation, the organization is also seeking a judgment in punitive damages.
Environnement Jeunesse is demanding a symbolic sum of $100 for each of the 3,471,903 Quebecers aged 35 and under, which would represent a total of nearly $350 million.
Rather than giving a check to each citizen, if successful, ENJEU asks that the money be used to put in place a restorative measure to curb global warming.
Learn more
-
- -9.3%
- Canada’s greenhouse gas emissions drop in 2020 from 2005 levels, as Ottawa pledges to cut them by 40-45% by 2030
source: Department of Environment and Climate Change Canada