Over 54,000 plaintiffs
The German government has been failing to meet its climate protection targets for years! More than 54,000 people are therefore taking legal action before the Federal Constitutional Court – for more climate protection and a future worth living!
The Federal Constitutional Court made history in 2021: In a landmark ruling, it ruled in favor of a climate lawsuit brought by young people and obliged the German government to make its climate policy more intergenerationally fair. However, too little has changed since then – the government continues to fall short of its own climate targets.
The new constitutional complaint is directed against the Federal Government’s inadequate measures in the transport and building sectors. Both sectors have been failing to meet their climate targets for years – without any effective consequences. The plaintiffs are demanding that politicians finally fulfill their constitutional obligations: to protect our livelihoods and the civil liberties of future generations.
The action for the future calls on the Federal Constitutional Court to declare the following:
- Germany’s climate protection targets are inadequate, the Climate Protection Act (KSG – Klimaschutzgesetz) allows more greenhouse gas emissions than the conctitutional law permits; the “ambition” is too low
- The amendment to the KSG, which came into force on July 16, 2024, is unconstitutional because it effectively postpones the reduction of emissions into the future and does not guarantee compliance with the targets by 2030 and beyond; and
- Specific laws and measures need to be enacted in the transport sector so that climate targets can be met and the civil liberties of all can be protected.
Germanwatch and Greenpeace Germany are suing as environmental organizations together with 54,584 individual plaintiffs. Protect the Planet supports the lawsuit.
Our entire team is also part of the plaintiffs.
Detailed information
The case
Press release:
Constitutional Complaint 2.0 Filed
Protect the Planet supports lawsuit for the future Together with over 54,000 co-plaintiffs, Greenpeace and Germanwatch have today submitted a
