Published on 31 July 2025 in Client Alerts

Barbados victorious in International Court of Justice climate change decision

On 23 July 2025, the International Court of Justice (the “ICJ”) issued its historic Advisory Opinion on the obligations of States with respect to climate change.  Barbados was a sponsor of the United Nations General Assembly request to the Court.  The Government of Barbados submitted extensive and fully-evidenced written and oral submissions during the proceedings.

Many of Barbados’s positions were adopted as argued, by the Court in its Advisory Opinion.  Indeed, the Advisory Opinion, as had been advocated by Barbados, confirmed that international law requires States to take stringent measures to mitigate and adapt to climate change.  The outcome is a win for many States, and especially for small Island States like Barbados, which are on the frontlines of the climate crisis.

Barbados has taken a global leadership role on climate change issues for many years.  The Government of Barbados enthusiastically welcomed this groundbreaking decision.  The Prime Minister of Barbados, the Honourable Mia Amor Mottley, noted that the Advisory Opinion “entirely justifies Barbados’ longstanding approach to the climate crisis” and “provides [Barbados] with a strong footing in the international legal order to keep putting [forward its] case”.  Barbados’s active participation and contributions to the ICJ proceedings reaffirm its commitment and leadership in the global efforts to mitigate and adapt to climate change.

Photo: Barbados’s delegation at the ICJ hearing in the climate change advisory opinion proceedings.  From right: Robert G Volterra, Co-Representative of Barbados and Partner at Volterra Fietta; Ambassador Simone Rudder, Ambassador of Barbados to the Kingdom of Belgium; The Honourable Kerrie D Symmonds, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade of Barbados; Shoné Jones, Solicitor General’s Chambers of Barbados; Ambassador François Jackman, Representative of Barbados and Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Barbados to the United Nations; Davion Sealy, Second Secretary, Embassy of Barbados in the Kingdom of Belgium; and Gunjan Sharma, Partner at Volterra Fietta (UN Photo/ICJ-CIJ/Frank van Beek. Courtesy of the ICJ)

Key findings of the Advisory Opinion 

The ICJ’s Advisory Opinion on climate change confirmed precisely the complex legal and factual positions that Barbados had advanced in its written and oral pleadings.  For example, the ICJ:

• confirmed that climate change is occurring, has severe and far-reaching consequences, including threatening human life and particularly affects small island States;
   
• required States to adopt stringent measures to mitigate and adapt to climate change;
   
• confirmed that States may be required to pay compensation and/or make other forms of reparation for breaching their obligations with respect to climate change.  The ICJ recognised that the rules of State responsibility under international law and the existing law of attribution and causation apply with respect to breaches of States’ obligations regarding climate change;
   
• confirmed that the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, the Kyoto Protocol and the Paris Agreement are not the sole – and do not displace other – sources of international law giving rise to obligations with respect to climate change.  The Court explicitly rejected the argument made by some States that the principle of lex specialis leads to the exclusion of other sources of international law;
   
• mandated that States adopt substantively binding and ambitious climate mitigation plans and carbon emission goals (called Nationally Determined Contributions) in line with specific standards; and
   
• confirmed that States’ obligations to protect the climate system and other parts of the environment from anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions are obligations erga omnes, meaning that any State can enforce them against any other States.  This was a novel legal position taken and laid out by Barbados in its first submission to the ICJ.

Implications of the Advisory Opinion

The ICJ Advisory Opinion is a highly significant landmark for general public international law, as well as the international law of the environment.  It clarified the obligations of States with respect to climate change as well as established the parameters for determining the legal consequences of breaching these obligations.  It also contained groundbreaking findings on the erga omnes character under general public international law of certain obligations with respect to climate change.

In doing so, the Court appears to open the door for future climate change cases.  The Advisory Opinion may prove to be a sound legal basis for contentious State-to-State claims concerning climate change related harm and reparations, provided sufficient evidence of a causal link can be established between a respondent’s acts or omissions and the alleged harm.  The Advisory Opinion may thus mark the beginning of a new wave of climate change adjudication before international courts and tribunals.  It will likely be considered as highly influential in domestic legal proceedings around the world.   

Background

The ICJ climate change advisory opinion proceedings began on 29 March 2023 at the request of the United Nations General Assembly.  Barbados co-sponsored this resolution. 

During these proceedings, Barbados and other States made written submissions to the ICJ on 22 March 2024 and 15 August 2024.  Barbados’s written submissions contained over 1,000 citations, including 84 scientific papers, 54 academic articles and 505 legal authorities.  Subsequently, on 2 December 2024, Barbados also made oral submissions on the first day of the ICJ’s hearing.  These written and oral submissions to the ICJ are summarised in previous Volterra Fietta client alerts (available respectively here and here).

Photo: The Honourable Kerrie D Symmonds, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade of Barbados addressing the ICJ at its public hearing (UN Photo/ICJ-CIJ/Frank van Beek. Courtesy of the ICJ)

The ICJ advisory opinion proceedings ran in parallel to the climate change advisory opinion proceedings before the Inter-American Court of Human Rights (the “IACtHR”).  On 9 January 2023, the Republic of Chile and the Republic of Colombia requested the IACtHR to provide an opinion on the obligations of States which are party to the American Convention on Human Rights (and related treaties) in light of climate change. 

Barbados also made groundbreaking written and oral submissions in the IACtHR proceedings.  During one of its hearings, the IACtHR even asked Barbados (and only Barbados) to file a further supplementary memorial to assist the Court in its deliberations.  The focus of Barbados’s supplementary memorial was the effects of climate change on the global financial system. 

The IACtHR issued its Advisory Opinion in these proceedings on 3 July 2025.  As with the ICJ Advisory Opinion, the IACtHR Advisory Opinion adopts many of the positions advanced by Barbados in its written and oral submissions.

Photo: Partner at Volterra Fietta, Gunjan Sharma addressing the IACtHR at the public hearing, sitting with Barbados’s Agent, Director Donna Forde and Barbados’s Co-Agent, Robert Volterra

Volterra Fietta acted as legal counsel and advocates for Barbados in both the IACtHR and ICJ Advisory Opinion proceedings.  The Volterra Fietta team working on these climate change cases was composed of lawyers from every inhabited continent in the world, including a number of lawyers from Barbados.  As part of its commitment to its client, the Volterra Fietta team shared its decades of successful experience in advising and representing governments in State-to-State litigation before international courts and tribunals by providing extensive practical training to officials and lawyers of the Government of Barbados on how to make effective written and oral submissions in such proceedings.  The firm is honoured to have supported Barbados throughout both these proceedings.

Photo: Barbados’s external legal team from Volterra Fietta.  From left: Florentine Vos, Consultant at Volterra Fietta; Gunjan Sharma, Partner at Volterra Fietta; Robert G Volterra, Partner at Volterra Fietta; Ahmed Abdel Hakam, Partner at Volterra Fietta; and Magdalena Kowalczuk Asher, Associate at Volterra Fietta

For further information, please contact info@volterrafietta.com.