IBA Annual Conference Copenhagen 2026
4 Oct - 9 Oct 2026
Session information
Litigation funding for class actions concerning environmental harm claims
Tuesday 6 October (1615 - 1730)
Committee(s)
Judges' Forum
(Lead)
Arbitration Committee
Banking & Financial Law Committee
Class Actions Committee
Energy, Environment, Natural Resources and Infrastructure Law Section (SEERIL)
Forum for Barristers and Advocates
Litigation Committee
Mediation Committee
Description
Since the litigation involving BHP and the Ok Tedi mine in Papua New Guinea in the late 1990s, there has been an increasing trend towards recognising litigation funding as well as class actions as effective modes of supporting litigation designed to redress the wrongs associated with environmental harm. Some of these strategies have been mooted in connection with concerns about climate change. Judges and advocates will discuss the trend towards recognising litigation funding across various jurisdictions, as well as the different ways in which class actions have been recognised and supported. How these have been utilised in connection with various types of claims involving litigation over the environment will be addressed and explained, as will the scope for taking gradual advantage of these litigation strategies.
Session / Workshop Chair(s)
| Amel Fenghour | Innsworth Advisors Limited, London, England; Vice Chair, Class Actions Committee |
| Hon Justice Mark Livesey | President Court of Appeal , Adelaide, South Australia, Australia; Chair, Judges' Forum |
Speakers
| James Abbott | Corrs Chambers Westgarth, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia; Asia Pacific Regional Forum Liaison Officer, Banking & Financial Law Committee |
| Justice David Barniville | President of the High Court of Ireland, Dublin, Ireland; Member, Judges' Forum Advisory Board |
| Roberta Danelon Leonhardt | Machado Meyer Advogados, São Paulo, Brazil; Council Member, Energy, Environment, Natural Resources and Infrastructure Law Section (SEERIL) |
| Adam HEPPINSTALL KC | Henderson Chambers, London, England |
| Jurjen Lemstra | Lemstra Van der Korst NV, Amsterdam, Netherlands |