Climate litigation in Brazil: an introduction

This chapter provides a comprehensive introduction to climate litigation in Brazil, a country of global importance due to its status as a significant emitter of greenhouse gases (GHGs), a climate-vulnerable nation, and a critical environmental steward with unique ecosystems such as the Amazon. Drawing on the insights of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the chapter underscores the urgency for states to adopt stronger climate policies as climate impacts grow increasingly severe. It highlights how climate litigation has emerged as a powerful tool for pressuring governments to adopt and enforce more robust climate mitigation and adaptation measures. In Brazil, climate litigation reflects a complex interplay between the need to reduce emissions and the imperative to protect vulnerable communities and sustain economic development. The chapter examines Brazil’s evolving landscape of climate litigation, including the judiciary’s role in challenging public authorities to enhance climate policies, the predominance of rights-based legal approaches, and the historical trajectory of court activism in environmental matters. Structured to offer both an overview of Brazil’s climate litigation journey and a preview of the book’s in-depth analyses, this chapter uses the Sabin Center for Climate Change Law’s operational definition of climate litigation to frame the diverse cases within this expanding field.