Advocates & Solicitors
Wednesday, 11 September 2024
Jia Yaw was invited to speak on the National Climate Governance Summit 2024’s Masterclass IV on Unravelling the Global Climate Litigation Landscape.
The National Climate Governance Summit 2024 was held at Sasana Kijang, Bank Negara Malaysia from 10 to 12 September 2024. The Summit was headlined by the Minister of Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability (NRES), YB Nik Nazmi, and featured 6 masterclasses and 14 workshops showcasing 85 speakers.
For this session, Tan Sri Tommy Thomas, Former Attorney General of Malaysia (current consultant of Tommy Thomas Advocates & Solicitors) gave the opening remarks. Followed, by a speech from President of the Malaysian Bar, Mohamad Ezri bin Abdul Wahab.
The session was moderated by Elizabeth Wu (Legal Consultant, Energy Systems (Asia) / Visiting Researcher) and featured two other panellists:
Jonathan White (Lawyer, Accountable Corporations, ClientEarth)
Lea Main-Klingst (Lawyer, Fundamental Rights, ClientEarth)
The panellists spoke on the latest trends in international and domestic climate litigation worldwide, highlighting cases such as Milieudefensie v Shell and Fossielvrij v KLM. Developments from the International Tribunal of the Law of the Sea’s Advisory Opinion on Climate Change were also discussed to showcase the State’s obligation to reduce greenhouse gas emissions under their jurisdictions, which may cause damage to other States, specifically island communities.
Jia Yaw shared on how climate change litigation in Malaysia could develop, especially in the absence of a domestic climate change legislation. He explained that such litigation is not the panacea for resolving the problem, but a tool to resolve specific differences between interest groups agitating for change and those who resist such a change, such as corporations and governments. He reiterated the importance of making the courts accessible and effective for resolving the differences between decision-makers, right-bearers and stakeholders.
The session closed with a speech from Puan Janet Looi (Senior Partner, Head of Corporate and Co-Head, ESG Group of Skrine).
To watch the session: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lIDRApkTgxE&list=PLyRsJW2gvmdPH5omsJIMM01PGhE4RBXXa&index=12