The summons of the climate case against Shell summarized in 4 pages

The document outlines a legal case brought against Shell in The Hague, asserting that the company is responsible for approximately 1.8% of historical human-caused CO2 emissions and currently contributes around 1% of global annual emissions. The claimants argue that Shell has known about the dangers of climate change since the 1950s but continues to invest heavily in fossil fuels, including shale gas and tar sands, thereby breaching its legal duty of care under the Dutch Civil Code. The summons demands that Shell reduce its CO2 emissions by at least 45% by 2030 and reach net zero by 2050, based on IPCC scenarios, claiming that Shell's own 2017 ambition of a 50% reduction in carbon intensity by 2050 is inadequate.

• Shell is historically responsible for 1.8% of all human-emitted CO2 and currently accounts for approximately 1% of global annual emissions.
• The claimants argue Shell has been aware of the large-scale and serious consequences of climate change since at least 1986 and has known about climate change generally since the 1950s.
• The summons alleges that Shell breached its duty of care by abandoning a sustainable pathway around 2007 to focus on polluting fossil fuels like shale gas and tar sands, while using PR campaigns to mislead the public.
• The claimants assert that Shell's 2017 climate ambition—reducing carbon intensity by 50% by 2050—is insufficient because it focuses on relative rather than absolute emission reductions and does not meet the IPCC's net-zero requirement for 2050.
• Milieudefensie et al. demand that Shell align with the IPCC pathway by reducing CO2 emissions by at least 45% by 2030 (relative to 2010) and achieving net zero by 2050.
• The legal argument is based on 'unlawful endangerment' under article 6:162 of the Dutch Civil Code, citing the Urgenda case where the Dutch state was found guilty of endangering citizens through inadequate CO2 reduction.

APA

Friends of the Earth International (n.d.). The summons of the climate case against Shell summarized in 4 pages. https://www.foei.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/english-summary-of-legal-summons.pdf

Chicago

Friends of the Earth International. The summons of the climate case against Shell summarized in 4 pages. n.d. https://www.foei.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/english-summary-of-legal-summons.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Friends of the Earth International |title=The summons of the climate case against Shell summarized in 4 pages |url=https://www.foei.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/english-summary-of-legal-summons.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{friendsoftheearthinternationalndsummons, author = {{Friends of the Earth International}}, title = {{The summons of the climate case against Shell summarized in 4 pages}}, institution = {Friends of the Earth International}, url = {https://www.foei.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/english-summary-of-legal-summons.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }