Jurisdiction of EU Courts in Environmental Damage Claims against non-EU domiciled defendants

Jurisdiction over environmental damage claims has become an increasingly salient issue in the broader debate on the transnational litigation of ESG-related disputes. This development reflects both the growing capability to trace the environmental consequences of multinational corporate activities and the increased public awareness of the need for effective environmental protection. Given that environmental damage is frequently capable of producing effects in several different States, such situations often raise complex questions regarding which courts have jurisdiction to adjudicate the resulting claims. The doctrinal and judicial discussion on this topic is already vast. The purpose of this short contribution is not to revisit the entire debate, but rather to focus on a specific and complex aspect from the perspective of the European Union: jurisdiction over environmental damage claims against defendants domiciled outside the EU (the so-called third-State defendants). The contribution considers how the current regime – marked by the absence of uniform EU rules – functions in practice and whether this lack of harmonisation is detrimental to the parties’ interests or if it might carry certain benefits, particularly in terms of judicial flexibility and access to justice.