Access to Justice: Remedies

1. Access to Justice: Remedies Article 9.4 of the Aarhus Convention and the Requirement for Adequate and Effective Remedies, Including Injunctive Relief

2. Past Studies and Other Sources • Milieu Report (2007) • Justice and Environment’s Report on Access to Justice in Environmental Matters (2010) • Global Legal Group, The International Comparative Legal Guide to Environment Law 2010 • Books • Access to justice in environmental matters in the EU, edited by Jonas Ebbesson (2002) • Access to justice in environmental matters and the role of NGO by de Sadeleer, Roller, and Dross (2005) • Websites, NIRs, REC training materials

3. Key Issues • Improving injunctive procedures • Suspensive effect • Promoting efficient resolution through administrative procedures • Tribunals and quasi-judicial bodies • Ombudsman

4. Injunctions • Periculum in mora • Danger of damage to the environment • Danger to the enforceability of the proceedings • Prima facie case • Personal harm • Weighing of interests

5. Barriers to Effective Injunctive Relief • Criteria too restrictive • Interpretation of criteria too restrictive • Vagueness • Bond • Threat of lawsuit • Lack of independent injunctive procedure • Enforcement and education problems

6. Key Issues • Improving injunctive procedures • Suspensive effect • Promoting efficient resolution through administrative procedures • Tribunals and quasi-judicial bodies • Ombudsman

7. Barriers to the Effectiveness of the Ombudsman • Discretion to launch investigations • Lack of resources • Lack of suspension of administrative decision or judicial appeals period • Lack of independence • Lack of environmental knowledge