Milieudefensie y otros contra Royal Dutch Shell PLC: un vistazo entre bastidores

The report provides a comprehensive 'behind-the-scenes' look at the litigation brought by Milieudefensie and over 17,000 co-plaintiffs against Royal Dutch Shell. On May 26, 2021, the District Court of The Hague ruled that Shell must reduce its net carbon emissions by 45% by 2030 compared to 2019 levels. The court based its decision on a 'duty of care' and the necessity to respect human rights, aligning corporate policy with the Paris Agreement. The document serves as a manual for other climate litigants, detailing strategies for funding, community mobilization, and legal argumentation, while analyzing Shell's defenses and the broader implications for corporate accountability and the energy transition.

• On May 26, 2021, the District Court of The Hague ordered Royal Dutch Shell to reduce its net carbon emissions by 45% by 2030 relative to 2019 levels.
• The court's ruling is historic because it is the first time a company has been held legally responsible for its contribution to climate change and ordered to align its corporate policies with the Paris Agreement.
• The judgment extends Shell's responsibility beyond its own operations (Scope 1 and 2) to include the carbon footprint of its suppliers and customers (Scope 3).
• The court based its decision on an unwritten 'duty of care' under Dutch law, interpreting it through the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights to conclude that companies must address climate change as a threat to human rights.
• Evidence presented in court indicated that Shell was aware of the link between fossil fuels and global warming as early as the 1950s, including a 1962 warning from its head of geology, Marion King Hubbert.
• The report argues that Shell's 'net zero' ambitions are insufficient because they rely on carbon offsets and capture technologies rather than absolute emission reductions, which can allow total emissions to increase.
• Shell contested the ruling on the grounds that it is antidemocratic for courts to direct the energy transition and that a ruling against a single company is ineffective if others fill the market void.
• The litigation strategy involved mobilizing over 17,000 individual co-plaintiffs to demonstrate broad public support and using a 'gift ladder' crowdfunding approach to secure legal funding.
• The ruling establishes a precedent that may encourage other climate litigations against large emitters and signals to investors that fossil fuel investments are high-risk.

APA

Friends of the Earth International (2021). Milieudefensie y otros contra Royal Dutch Shell PLC: un vistazo entre bastidores. https://www.foei.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/Cómo-derrotamos-a-Shell.pdf

Chicago

Friends of the Earth International. Milieudefensie y otros contra Royal Dutch Shell PLC: un vistazo entre bastidores. 2021. https://www.foei.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/Cómo-derrotamos-a-Shell.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Friends of the Earth International |title=Milieudefensie y otros contra Royal Dutch Shell PLC: un vistazo entre bastidores |date=November 2021 |url=https://www.foei.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/Cómo-derrotamos-a-Shell.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{friendsoftheearthinternational2021milieudefensie, author = {{Friends of the Earth International}}, title = {{Milieudefensie y otros contra Royal Dutch Shell PLC: un vistazo entre bastidores}}, institution = {Friends of the Earth International}, year = {2021}, month = nov, url = {https://www.foei.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/Cómo-derrotamos-a-Shell.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }