On October 25, 2019, fifteen children and youth from across Canada filed an action in Federal Court against Canada and the Attorney General of Canada alleging that the federal government's conduct contributing to greenhouse gas emissions and climate change violated their rights under sections 7 and 15 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The plaintiffs alleged that climate change was already harming their physical and psychological well-being and would disproportionately burden children and future generations. They also alleged that Canada had breached obligations under a proposed public trust doctrine to protect common natural resources.

The original claim challenged a broad range of federal conduct, including Canada's contribution to greenhouse gas emissions, the adoption of emissions-reduction targets allegedly inconsistent with climate science, its failure to meet previous emissions targets, and federal support for fossil-fuel development. The plaintiffs sought declarations that Canada's conduct violated sections 7 and 15 of the Charter and its asserted public trust obligations. They also sought an order requiring Canada to develop and implement a Climate Recovery Plan consistent with Canada's share of the global carbon budget and asked the Court to retain jurisdiction over implementation.

Canada moved to strike the claim. On October 27, 2020, the Federal Court granted the motion and struck the action without leave to amend. The Court held that the plaintiffs' Charter claims were not justiciable because they challenged an overly broad and diffuse range of government conduct rather than sufficiently discrete state action capable of constitutional review. It further held that the section 7 and section 15 claims disclosed no reasonable cause of action. Although the Court considered the existence of a public trust doctrine to be a justiciable legal question, it concluded that the doctrine pleaded by the plaintiffs had no reasonable prospect of recognition under Canadian law.

The plaintiffs appealed. On December 13, 2023, the Federal Court of Appeal allowed the appeal in part. The Court held that the section 7 claims were justiciable and should not have been dismissed as having no reasonable prospect of success merely because they raised complex questions concerning climate policy or potentially positive state obligations. The Court concluded that the plaintiffs had identified federal legislation and Orders in Council capable of providing a legal framework for constitutional review and that a causal relationship between federal action and alleged harms to life, liberty, or security of the person was not manifestly incapable of proof.

The Federal Court of Appeal nevertheless agreed that the section 7 claim, as originally pleaded, was too broad and diffuse to permit constitutional adjudication. It therefore struck the section 7 claim with leave to amend so that the plaintiffs could identify with greater precision the legislation and government conduct alleged to cause the constitutional deprivation. The Court upheld the dismissal, without leave to amend, of the plaintiffs' section 15 claim and their public trust claim.

Following the appellate decision, the plaintiffs filed an amended statement of claim on May 31, 2024. The amended pleading narrowed the case to a section 7 Charter claim and identified specific federal laws and measures that the plaintiffs allege authorize, facilitate, or contribute to greenhouse gas emissions and thereby create or exacerbate risks to their life, liberty, and security of the person.

On December 11, 2024, the Federal Court issued an order setting the matter for trial beginning October 26, 2026, in Vancouver. After a further case-management order, the plaintiffs filed a further amended statement of claim on January 13, 2025. The case has since proceeded through pretrial discovery and expert disclosure. Trial is scheduled to begin on October 26, 2026.

La Rose v. His Majesty the King

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La Rose v. His Majesty the King - statement of reply

Filed

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An aim to achieve a quantifiable outcome within a given time-frame, set by an institution such as a national government.

Policy instruments are techniques or tools used by governing authorities to promote certain policies in order to achieve predetermined goals. Put simply, instruments are how a government tries to achieve its goals, with this taxonomy being focused on national policy instruments.

Risk is the potential for adverse consequences resulting from the dynamic interplay between (climate-related) hazards, exposure, and vulnerability of affected human or ecological systems.

Groups  of people who are adversely affected by climate change or the response to it

A set of principles, processes, and practices that build economic and political power to shift from an extractive economy to a regenerative economy.

Justice is the ethical and political framework that addresses fairness, including issues of responsibility, rights, and structural inequity.

Renewable energy means all forms of energy produced from renewable sources in a sustainable manner.

Fossil fuel is a generic term for non-renewable energy sources such as coal, fossil gas, and oil (including crude oil, and petroleum products), that can be used for electricity and heat generation. Fossil fuels are hydrocarbons formed from pressurised and heated organic material buried over millions of years.

Molecules in the atmosphere that play a key role in the greenhouse effect by trapping heat radiating from Earth’s surface.

Area of the economy in which actors engage in identical or related activities.

In human systems, the process of adjustment to actual or expected climate change and its effects, in order to moderate harm, increase resilience or exploit beneficial opportunities. In natural systems, the process of adjustment to actual climate change and its effects; human intervention may facilitate adjustment to expected climate change and its effects.

The management and allocation of funds, assets and investments to meet various objectives

People who are less able to respond to the effects of climate change due to having limited financial or physical assets

A subsidy is a direct or indirect payment to individuals or businesses, typically provided as a government cash payment or a specific tax reduction.

A ban is a legal action that prevents the sale or supply of a product or service, or that recalls a product from the market. Examples are bans on SF6, greenwashing, fossil fuel advertisement or single-use plastics.

Financial actors and resources that are primarily directed towards climate change mitigation, adaptation and compensation.

Dedicated pool of financial resources for climate-related projects.

An agency providing government-backed financing, guarantees, and insurance to support domestic companies' international exports, that can play a role in financing climate-related projects.

A financial institution that manages a country's currency and can promote climate-related initiatives through green monetary policy and other means.

A company that is owned wholly or partially by the state, typically operating in key sectors.

A target to reduce the prevalence of a greenhouse gas over a specific time frame

A commitment to balance GHG emissions with removal by a certain point in time, effectively reducing the net emissions to zero

Either money or something of monetary value is transferred between two or more organisations, people or countries.

Conditions that enhance the feasibility of adaptation options. Enabling conditions include finance, technological innovation, strengthening policy instruments, institutional capacity, multi-level governance and changes in human behaviour and lifestyles.

Actions or measures to adapt freshwater systems to climate change.

Actions to adapt human health, healthcare systems and well-being to climate change.

Actions to adapt and increase the resilience of rural and urban infrastructure and settlements to climate change.

Actions or measures to adapt freshwater, coastal and marine systems to climate change.

Hot temperature extremes are daily maximum temperatures  that were exceeded on average once in a decade or once in 50 years, and includes heatwaves.

A long-lived, colourless gas, chiefly emitted from fossil fuel combustion, deforestation and cement production.

A potent, short-lived greehouse gas, largely released from livestock, fossil fuel extraction and waste management.

Replacing technologies that burn fossil fuels directly with alternatives powered by electricity.

Actions to reduce emissions in energy generation and supply.

Technologies that capture and hold energy in reserve for later use.

Risks to the ecosystem health of the marine environment, including ocean warming, ocean acidification, and ocean deoxygenation, harming biodiversity, species health, ecosystem services, and coastal community livelihoods.

Extreme weather refers to events where a weather variable exceeds (or falls below) a threshold. Meaning it is significantly different from the average or usual weather pattern.

A drought is an extended period of unusually dry weather marked by a significant and sustained lack of precipitation, falling below a specific threshold over a large area for more than a month

Terrestrial means "of the earth" and relates to the risks to ecological system that includes all living organisms and their interactions within land-based environments, such as forests, grasslands, and deserts.

Air pollution involves harmful contaminants in the air, affecting both indoor and outdoor environments. It can lead to health issues like respiratory diseases and heart problems, and climate impacts such as global warming. Pollutants can damage plants, trees, habitats, and water bodies like rivers and lakes.

Social inclusion is the process of improving the terms on which individuals and groups take part in society—improving the ability, opportunity, and dignity of those disadvantaged on the basis of their identity.

Oil is a combustible liquid fossil fuel composed mainly of hydrocarbons, occurring as crude oil and refined into petroleum products such as petrol, diesel and kerosene.

Fossil gas, commonly known as natural gas, is a fossil fuel consisting chiefly of methane with smaller amounts of other hydrocarbons and trace gases, found in underground deposits.

Coal is a combustible sedimentary rock formed from carbonised plant matter, rich in carbon and hydrocarbons, and occurring in several main types including hard coal and brown coal.

People with different national or cultural traditions from the dominant population

Work that is productive and delivers a fair income, security in the workplace and social protection for all, better prospects for personal development and social integration, freedom for people to express their concerns, organize and participate in the decisions that affect their lives and equality of opportunity.

Social and cultural groups that share collective ancestral ties to the lands and natural resources where they live, occupy or from which they have been displaced

Jobs that contribute to preserving or restoring the environment. We include jobs which require a high amount of green skills or which spend much of their time on green activities, as well as jobs transforming polluting industries.

woman and genders outside of the gender binary

Activities of industries that extract natural resources, such as mining, oil, and gas, for commercial use.

The activities of industries that transforms raw materials into finished goods through industrial processes.

The activities of industries involved in the production, distribution, and sale of energy, including electricity, gas, and renewables.

Activities that involve planning, designing and building infrastructure, residential, and commercial structures.

This sector involves the wholesale and retail selling of goods.

This sector involves activities to move goods and people, alongside the storage of products.

This sector involves activities that impart knowledge and skills to individuals, including formal schooling, vocational training and educational support.

Activities of government agencies and institutions that provide public services, enforce laws and manage public resources.

Activities of businesses and institutions that provide financial services and products to individuals and organisations.

Activities that involve the cultivation of crops and raising of livestock for food, fibre, and other products essential for human life and industry.

Climate change impacts our society by disrupting the natural, economic and social systems we depend on. Physical hazards and underlying vulnerabilities can lead to increased resource competition for food and water, which can heighten the risk of conflict.

Slow onset events evolve gradually from incremental changes over many years or from increased frequency or intensity of recurring events. As defined in the Cancun Adaptation Framework (2010), slow onset events include risks and impacts from rising temperatures, desertification, biodiversity loss, land and forest degradation, glacial retreat, ocean acidification, sea level rise, and salinization.

Heavy precipitation refers to any form of weather where substances fall from the sky, including rain, snow, sleet, or hail.

The cryosphere is the frozen part of the Earth—it includes sea ice, glaciers, snow, and ice sheets. It helps regulate the climate and weather by reflecting sunlight. Rising temperatures are causing melting, leading to sea ice loss, glacier collapse, and glacier landslides and avalanches. This threatens the livelihoods of around 700 million people who rely on the cryosphere for food, water security, and cultural practices.

La Rose v. His Majesty the King - statement of reply

Target

Policy instrument

Risk

Impacted group

Just transition

Renewable energy

Fossil fuel

Greenhouse gas

Economic sector

Adaptation/resilience

Finance