Judging Without Waymarkers: The Engagement of Domestic Courts with International Climate Change Law

The article examines how domestic courts engage with international climate change law in the absence of clear “waymarkers” (i.e., direct enforcement mechanisms or explicit guidance from international climate treaties). It argues that national judges play an increasingly important role in interpreting and applying international climate norms in climate litigation. Rather than relying on a centralized enforcement system, courts “fill the gaps” by drawing on principles of international environmental law, human rights reasoning, and comparative judicial practice. A key focus is on how this judicial engagement is fragmented but converging, meaning that while approaches differ across jurisdictions, there is a growing pattern of courts referencing international climate agreements (such as the Paris Agreement) and using them to support domestic constitutional or administrative decisions. The article also highlights the tension between sovereignty and global environmental obligations, and how courts navigate issues of justiciability, standing, and separation of powers.