THE HAGUE, July 8, 2025 — The International Court of Justice (ICJ) will issue its long-awaited Advisory Opinion on States’ legal obligations in relation to climate change on Wednesday, July 23, 2025, at 3 pm CEST. Experts from the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL) will be available for comment before and after the decision is released.
This historic ruling is expected to clarify what international law requires of States to protect people and the planet from the escalating climate crisis, and the legal consequences of State actions and omissions that lead to climate harm. Advisory opinions are authoritative judicial statements of binding international law and carry substantial legal weight.
The ruling follows unprecedented global participation in the proceedings, which included 96 States and 11 international organizations participating in the oral hearings and a record number of written submissions from across the world.
The request for the Advisory Opinion was spearheaded by Vanuatu, the Pacific Islands, as well as climate-affected nations and youth campaigners worldwide.
CIEL experts can explain the legal and political significance of the Court’s opinion and its implications for litigation, policymaking, corporate accountability, and international climate negotiations. CIEL has engaged in the ICJ process through legal submissions, State briefings, providing input to State submissions, and coordinating with global partners.
Experts available for comment
Nikki Reisch – CIEL Climate & Energy Program Director.
Joie Chowdhury – CIEL Senior Attorney. Follow Joie on LinkedIn, Twitter, or Bluesky.
Sébastien Duyck – CIEL Senior Attorney, Human Rights and Climate Change. Follow Sébastien on Twitter, LinkedIn, or Bluesky.
Media contact
In CEST Timezone: Niccolò Sarno, CIEL Media Relations (Geneva) + 41 22 506 80 37 or [email protected]
In EDT Timezone: Maria Frausto, CIEL Communications Director (Washington, DC) + 1 202 569 81 07 or [email protected]
Note to editors
The ICJ is one of four international tribunals asked to issue guidance on States’ legal obligations to address the climate emergency. On July 3, 2025, the Inter-American Court of Human Rights affirmed in a historic advisory opinion that States and corporations have binding obligations under international law to address the climate crisis as a human rights emergency and that States cannot deviate from these legal obligations. In May 2024, the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea made history with the first-ever advisory opinion on climate change from an international court, stating that, in order to protect the oceans, States must take all available measures to cut greenhouse gas emissions, which pollute the marine environment. The opinion set the bar for future court judgments and policy decisions on climate action. In May 2025, the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights was asked to weigh in on States’ climate obligations with the potential to further deepen the landscape of climate jurisprudence.
For more information
CIEL Resource page: What the ICJ Could Say and Why It Matters
CIEL Analysis: The Historic ICJ Climate Hearings on Climate Justice
CIEL Analysis: The Climate Advisory Opinions and Legal Duties to Make the Ocean Fossil-Free