Trends in Dispute Resolution Forum 2025

We had the pleasure of hosting the Trends in Dispute Resolution Forum 2025 where we heard leading voices from the legal profession and from academia, who shared insights into the rapidly evolving landscape of Climate Litigation.

Our own Odin Breidvik first gave the participants an overview of Global Climate Litigation, highlighting the latest trends from the legal scene exemplified by a walk-through of the landmark cases from the latest years – both cases against different European governments, but also cases against corporations – a rapidly growing group of cases, now constituting up to 40 % of the total Climate Litigation cases registered outside of the U.S.

Freshfields’ partner Stefanie Spancken-Monz then addressed this growing phenomenon of Climate Litigation against private companies, and presented lessons learned from the German landmark case Lliuya v. RWE which she had litigated, a judgement “fresh off the press” from 28 May 2025. Ane Sydnes Egeland, from the University of Oslo, finally offered a closer look at Climate Litigation in Norway, outlining the recent cases and the unique legal dilemmas the Norwegian state is facing.

Wiersholm partner and lawyer, Morten Goller, guided us through this very successful event.

3 key takeaways:

It is rational for companies to make their own Environmental Impact Assessments (EIA) and human rights assessments when applying for licensing or development of projects with greenhouse gas emissions
The number of Climate Litigation cases against companies is growing. Stricter regulations on corporate sustainability claims and the recent expansion of regulatory reporting requirementswill increase this number further the coming years
A holistic long-term strategy is important for companies that face legal climate action – focus on legal arguments backed-up by scientific expert opinions

A warm thank you to all speakers and participants for making the day a truly insightful and engaging experience. We already look forward to welcoming you back next year!