Identifying Gaps in Climate-Litigation-Relevant Research: An Assessment from Interviews with Legal Scholars and Practitioners

The report outlines critical research needs across natural sciences, social sciences, and legal analysis to support climate litigation. Key gaps include the need for localized attribution science, investigations into corporate disinformation and internal knowledge (including non-fossil fuel industries), and the quantification of economic damages. It also emphasizes the necessity of 'translational work' to bridge the communication gap between scientists, legal practitioners, and judges, particularly regarding legally relevant timeframes and standards of evidence.

• Attribution science is a primary research need, with a specific demand for studies that narrow the geographic scale to strategic litigation locations and connect impacts to specific carbon pollution sources, including nations and corporate actors.
• There is a significant need for corporate research beyond US-based fossil fuel companies, specifically exploring historical internal knowledge of climate change, greenwashing, and the role of the financial sector in funding fossil fuel projects.
• Legal practitioners identified a need for research on corporate actors outside the fossil fuel industry, such as insurance companies, chemical manufacturers, agriculture, and public relations firms, to determine when they knew about climate change and how they responded.
• A critical gap exists in 'translational work' to facilitate communication between the scientific and judicial communities, including resources to help judges understand climate science and help scientists understand legal standards of proof.
• There is a disconnect between the timeframes used in climate research (often 100 years) and those relevant to courts, which typically range from zero to 20 years.
• Legal research gaps include the need for comparative analysis between jurisdictions regarding standards of scientific evidence, standing, and duties of care, as well as the legal status of fossil fuel investments and Scope 3 emissions liability.

APA

Merner, L. D., Franta, B., & Frumhoff, P. C. (2022). Identifying Gaps in Climate-Litigation-Relevant Research: An Assessment from Interviews with Legal Scholars and Practitioners. Climate Social Science Network. https://cssn.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/CSSN-Research-Report-2022_2-Identifying-Gaps-in-Climate-Litigation-Relevant-Research-An-Assessment-from-Interviews-with-Legal-Scholars-and-Practitioners.pdf

Chicago

Merner, L. Delta, Benjamin Franta, and Peter C. Frumhoff. Identifying Gaps in Climate-Litigation-Relevant Research: An Assessment from Interviews with Legal Scholars and Practitioners. Climate Social Science Network, 2022. https://cssn.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/CSSN-Research-Report-2022_2-Identifying-Gaps-in-Climate-Litigation-Relevant-Research-An-Assessment-from-Interviews-with-Legal-Scholars-and-Practitioners.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Merner |first1=L. Delta |last2=Franta |first2=Benjamin |last3=Frumhoff |first3=Peter C. |title=Identifying Gaps in Climate-Litigation-Relevant Research: An Assessment from Interviews with Legal Scholars and Practitioners |publisher=Climate Social Science Network |date=April 2022 |url=https://cssn.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/CSSN-Research-Report-2022_2-Identifying-Gaps-in-Climate-Litigation-Relevant-Research-An-Assessment-from-Interviews-with-Legal-Scholars-and-Practitioners.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{merner2022identifying, author = {Merner, L. Delta and Franta, Benjamin and Frumhoff, Peter C.}, title = {{Identifying Gaps in Climate-Litigation-Relevant Research: An Assessment from Interviews with Legal Scholars and Practitioners}}, institution = {Climate Social Science Network}, year = {2022}, month = apr, url = {https://cssn.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/CSSN-Research-Report-2022_2-Identifying-Gaps-in-Climate-Litigation-Relevant-Research-An-Assessment-from-Interviews-with-Legal-Scholars-and-Practitioners.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }