Latest news with #HigherRegionalCourt
Canada Standard
3 days ago
- Business
- Canada Standard
BREAKING: Landmark German Court Ruling Could Bring Corporate Climate Liability to Canada
A landmark court ruling against a German utility could open the door to corporate liability for climate pollution in Canada, a leading environmental lawyer says. In Hamm, Germany earlier today, the Higher Regional Court ruled that major emitters can be held liable for the consequences of climate change, even though it threw out the specific civil case by Peruvian mountain guide Sal Luciano Lliuya against energy giant RWE. "Today the mountains have won," Luciano Lliuya declared. "Even if my case doesn't go any further, it has reached an important milestone, and that makes me proud. This ruling shows that the big polluters driving the climate [emergency] can finally be held legally responsible for the harm they have caused." While the judges concluded that the flood risk to Luciano Lliuya's home below a melting glacier was not sufficient to warrant compensation, "it confirmed for the first time that major emitters can be held liable under German civil law for risks resulting from climate change," Germanwatch wrote. "This sets a legal precedent with far-reaching implications, potentially influencing similar cases in countries like Switzerland and Belgium, and applicable in other jurisdictions such as the UK, the Netherlands, the USA, or Japan." Or in Canada, said Ecojustice Climate Director Charlie Hatt. "There is every chance this principle will eventually become a precedent in Canadian courts, as well," Hatt said in a release. "Investors and fossil execs take note-it is only a matter of time before the bill for climate harms will come due." Already, "as governments and large corporations fail to control their climate pollution, claimants are increasingly finding success holding them accountable in the courts, including examples like the youth-led Mathur case here in Canada," he added. "The principle is simple: it is wrong to produce and burn fossil fuels in excess of the limits defined by climate science because it harms people, and anyone harmed may get a legal remedy against the wrongdoers." International legal experts heaped praise on what Jasper Tuelings, strategic advisor at the Climate Litigation Network, declared a "historic judgement". "The Peruvian mountain guide has paved the way for a new era of holding fossil fuel companies accountable," said Sebastien Duyck, senior attorney at the Center for International Environmental Law. "For too long, these heavy emitters have been able to harm our environment with no regard to the consequences," but "that time is over," Ducyk said. "Sal's breakthrough opens up a well of opportunities for the more than 40 similar cases ongoing. It makes it more likely that those living at the sharp edge of climate change, such as Saul and his community, can succeed in holding heavy emitters to account for the damage they cause." Source: The Energy Mix
Toronto Sun
4 days ago
- Toronto Sun
Suspect in fatal knife attack at German festival admits killings as trial starts
Published May 27, 2025 • 1 minute read Issa Al H., accused of stabbing three people to death during a city festival, sits in the courtroom of the Higher Regional Court in Duesseldorf, Germany, Tuesday, May 27, 2025. Photo by Federico Gambarini / AP BERLIN — The suspect in a knife attack at a festival in the German city of Solingen went on trial Tuesday on murder and terrorism charges, and acknowledged his guilt as the proceedings opened. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account Three people were killed in the Aug. 23 attack at a 'Festival of Diversity' marking the 650th anniversary of the city in western Germany. The Syrian man, who has been identified only as Issa Al H. in line with German privacy rules, was arrested a day after the attack. He is charged with three counts of murder, 10 counts of attempted murder and membership in a foreign terrorist organization, the Islamic State group, in the trial at the state court in Duesseldorf. There are no formal pleas in the German legal system. However, the suspect admitted responsibility for the attack in a statement read by his lawyers, German news agency dpa reported. 'I have brought severe guilt upon myself. I am prepared to accept the verdict,' he said. 'I killed innocent people, not infidels.' This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. The Solingen incident was one of several deadly attacks in the months leading up to Germany's national election in February that involved immigrant suspects, pushing migration to the forefront of the political agenda in that vote. It highlighted problems with returning rejected asylum-seekers to the first country where they entered the European Union, as is supposed to happen under EU rules. The suspect was supposed to be deported to Bulgaria in 2023 but reportedly disappeared for a time and avoided expulsion. Murder charges carry a maximum sentence of life in prison in Germany. The Duesseldorf court has scheduled trial sessions until late September. Columnists Sunshine Girls Sunshine Girls Relationships Columnists
Yahoo
4 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Defendant confesses in trial over deadly attack on Germany's Solingen
The man accused of an attack in the German city of Solingen that left three people dead last year has confessed on the first day of his trial. The suspect, a Syrian national named as Issa al H. under German privacy laws, admitted to the stabbing on Tuesday in a statement on his behalf read out by defence lawyers. "I have brought heavy guilt upon myself. I am ready to accept the judgement," he said. "I killed innocent people, not infidels." The trial began in a high-security wing at the Dusseldorf Higher Regional Court, months after the attack at a street festival in Solingen on August 23, 2024. The defendant is charged with three counts of murder and ten counts of attempted murder. He is accused of membership in the Islamic State terror group, having allegedly pledged allegiance to the organization in videos hours before the attack. Prosecutors said before the start of the trial that the man sought contact with Islamic State in radical online forums. Operatives then offered him guidance, including in the choice of weapons. The accused entered the courtroom dressed in a blue t-shirt and kept his head mostly bowed in the dock. A total of 12 co-plaintiffs are listed in the trial, including people injured in the attack and relatives of the victims. The fatalities were two men aged 56 and 67 and a 56 year-old woman. Eight people were injured in the attack.
Euronews
5 days ago
- Politics
- Euronews
Vienna court clears former Chancellor Kurz of false statement charges
Vienna's Higher Regional Court, on Monday, overturned former Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz's eight-month suspended prison sentence for making false statements in a parliamentary inquiry. Judges at Vienna's upper state court threw out Kurz's conviction after a short appeal hearing, the Austria Press Agency reported. "What came out is what I have always said — namely, that I did not tell untruths to the parliamentary inquiry," Kurz said in a brief statement to reporters outside the courtroom after Monday's decision. "I now have a long time in (legal) proceedings behind me, and to be honest I'd like to set out my position in detail, but I ask for your understanding that I'm going home to family and my two children first," Kurz added. The case centered on Kurz's testimony to an inquiry that focused on the coalition he led from 2017, when his conservative Austrian People's Party formed a coalition with the far-right Freedom Party, until its collapse in 2019. Prosecutors accused the 38-year-old of giving false evidence in June 2020 regarding his role in setting up a holding company, OeBAG, which administers the state's role in some companies and appointing former close confidant Thomas Schmid to its leadership. Kurz was found guilty of making false statements about the company's supervisory board, though not about Schmid. Judges on Monday upheld the conviction of Kurz's former chief of staff, Bernhard Bonelli, for making a false statement to the parliamentary inquiry about his own involvement and that of Kurz in the selection of OeBAG supervisory board members. He was given a six-month suspended sentence last year. Kurz said he deeply regrets the decision on Bonelli. The former leader of the Alpine country appealed the sentence after the four-month court case, which was the first time a former Austrian chancellor had stood trial in more than 30 years. Once a rising star among conservatives in Europe, Kurz resigned in 2021. His People's Party still leads the government under current Chancellor Christian Stocker, although it finished second in an election in September.
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Meta can use public content to train AI software, German court rules
US tech giant Meta can use Facebook and Instagram posts from EU users to train its artificial intelligence software Meta AI, a German court ruled on Friday. The case before the Higher Regional Court in Cologne was brought by the consumer protection agency in the western state of North Rhine-Westphalia, accusing Meta of violating EU data protection rules. From May 27, the US parent company plans to use public content including posts and comments made by adult users on Instagram and Facebook in the European Union to train its AI platform, unless users actively object. Content posted by users under the age of 18 will not be used, according to Meta, which rejected that its plans would violate EU law. "This training, which follows the successful launch of Meta AI in Europe last month, will better support millions of people and businesses in the EU by teaching AI at Meta to better understand and reflect their cultures, languages and history," the company said in an announcement on April 14. "People's interactions with Meta AI – like questions and queries – will also be used to train and improve our models," it added. Presiding Judge Oliver Jörgens on Friday ruled that the consumer association's complaint was unfounded. The court found that the use of the data for AI training was lawful even without user consent as Meta is pursuing a legitimate purpose with the use of the data which cannot be achieved by other, less intrusive means.
