This Government bill amends the Climate Change Response Act 2002 to create a statutory bar on tort liability for emissions-related climate change effects, so that no person — including the Crown — can be found liable in tort for causing or contributing to greenhouse gas emissions. The bar applies to existing court proceedings not yet finally determined, and the policy statement says it responds to the pending Smith v Fonterra trial, on the basis that climate policy should be set by Parliament and the Executive under the Act rather than developed through tort litigation. The bill is before Parliament: its first reading passed under urgency on 30 June 2026 and its second reading passed 67–55 on 4 August 2026 (a provisional tally from the uncorrected transcript).
Parliament advanced this bill under urgency (first reading) — moving it through faster than usual, with less time than normal for public submissions.
This bill amends the Climate Change Response Act 2002, which sets New Zealand's 2050 emissions target and the framework of emissions budgets. It confirms that responsibility for developing and setting climate regulatory policy sits with the Executive and Parliament, and creates a statutory bar so that no person, including the Crown, can be found liable in tort for the climate-change effects of greenhouse gas emissions. To keep the law coherent, the bar is stated to apply to existing proceedings not yet finally determined by a court.
Supporters argue that emissions policy is properly a matter for Parliament and regulation rather than the courts, and that a clear bar provides certainty for businesses and the Crown. Others counter that removing tort liability closes off a potential avenue of legal accountability for climate harm, including for cases already before the courts, and raises questions about access to justice and the rights of affected parties.
See the Parliament.nz ↗ site for the full bill.