Climate Science and Law Forum

The foundations of the Forum are based on the belief that: 

• The law has an important role in enabling the transition to net zero, and in ensuring that transition is just 
• The intersection of legal expertise and scientific insight necessitates lawyers to be well-versed and actively involved in the latest climate science: if the full potential of legal action on climate change is to be realised, it is essential that lawyers have access to scientific insight that provides a firm factual basis for claims 
• There's a need to promote a deeper understanding of the latest scientific knowledge within the legal community, while also offering scientific scholars valuable insights into the questions and challenges faced by the legal profession. In addition, scientists can discover a vital conduit for their work to furnish essential evidence and practical applications through the law  
• The application of the law to facts and evidence is never purely mechanistic: every legal case is decided within a political, social and cultural context and an understanding of what can and cannot be evidenced and what belongs in the courts 
• With time being of the essence and to justly address pressing legal questions on climate change, a close collaboration between lawyers, scientists and legal scholars is important to ensure the latest science is understood in the courts and scholars answer the questions society has 
• Addressing climate change is one of the paramount societal challenges of our time, and science has a vital role to play in helping society comprehend and take meaningful action to tackle this challenge