Framing climate remedies in European human rights law: It is all about trust–in European democracies

Abstract

This article examine show frame analysis contributes to the analysis of remedies in the three seminal climate rulings of the European Court of Human Rights. It argues that the Courth as actively shaped human rights-based climate remedies through the frame of ‘democratic trust’. This frame places democratic institutions of European states, notably, governments, parliaments courts and civil society, at the heart of securing climate remedies, whilst marginalising two counter-frames, the ‘climate justice frame’ calling for remedies to align with European states’ fair share contributions to climate change and the ‘climate urgency frame’ requiring clear deadlines for action. The democratic trust frame has important doctrinal consequences. Whilst it diagnoses climate change as a human rights problem, it strengthens the presumption of deference to national actors insolving this problem and places significant expectations on successful political and legal mobilisation of civil society in securing effective climate action. The analysis advanced in the article demonstrates the utility of frame analysis in unearthing how key ideas are mobilised and disregarded in the making of solution and motivational frames in court judgments and how legal doctrine is shaped by framing effects.