Asmania et al. vs Holcim - Other

Litigation

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Sabin Litigation

press release

Asmania et al. vs Holcim - press release

Filing Year For Action

Four inhabitants of the Indonesian island of Pari have sued Swiss-based major buildings materials company Holcim (from 2015 to 2021: Lafarge Holcim). In July 2022, they filed a request for conciliation before the Justice of the Peace of the Canton of Zug, Switzerland. This is a necessary step required by the Swiss Civil Procedure Code.
The plaintiffs are supported by three NGOs: HEKS/EPER (Switzerland), the European Center for Constitutional and European Rights (ECCHR) and WALHI (Indonesia).
The plaintiffs request:
•	proportional compensation for climate change-related damages on Pari
•	reduction of CO2 emissions by 43 % by 2030 and by 69% by 2040, relative to 2019 levels
•	financial contribution to adaptation measures on Pari
The claim can be seen as novel and unprecedented as it combines two approaches: reduction of GHGs and compensation.

On February 1, 2023, following a Conciliation Hearing before the Justice of the Peace in October 2022 where no settlement was reached, the NGOs supporting the plaintiffs announced that the plaintiffs had formally lodged a lawsuit against Holcim with the Cantolnal Court of Zug (Kantonsgericht Zug). 

In October 2023, Cantonal Court of Zug granted the plaintiffs’ request for free legal aid (art. 117 et seq Civil Procedure Code). According to a press release of HEKS, the judge held that the two requirements for granting free legal aid, (a) insufficient sufficient funds to pay for legal cost and (b) the legal petition does not seem to be lacking any chance of success, were met.

The legal basis on which the plaintiffs rely is Article 28 of the Swiss Civil Code (infringement of personal rights) and Article 41 of the Code of Obligations (redress for unjust harm). As to Holcim's historical emissions, the plaintiffs rely on a Study by Richard Heede/Climate Accountability Institute. 

Note: Case documents are currently not available - the information presented here is based on media releases of the NGOs that support the plaintiffs. More detailed information is not available at this time. 