The case
In Pakistan, the climate crisis is not a distant future threat but a present reality – one that highlights the urgent need for financial compensation for the damage already caused.
While most of the previous climate lawsuits have primarily aimed at obligating companies to reduce their emissions or prevent future damage, this case from Pakistan goes one step further: it demands compensation for damage that has already occurred. The 43 claimants have lost two seasons of their harvest of rice and wheat crops, due to the 2022 floods. They now are claiming partial compensation for the damages, which are estimated at approximately one million euros. Their claim relies upon a generally recognized principle of civil law: the perpetrator of a harmful act must compensate for the damage caused. In German law, this is set out in § 823 BGB. When applied to climate damages in Pakistan, industries that drive and compound the climate crisis must therefore bear some of the costs of the resulting loss and damage. The case builds upon the legal foundations established in the Saúl Luciano Lliuya v. RWE case, where a German court accepted in principle that a major emitter could be held liable under the German civil code (BGB) for climate-related damages abroad.
The farmers are claiming that the companies have a legal duty to minimize the harm they knew would result from emitting greenhouse gases. Despite their knowledge of this harm, RWE and Heidelberg Materials not only did very little to reduce emissions, but even tried for decades to weaken the binding rules for climate protection instituted by lawmakers. This is a breach of the duty of care (Verkehrssicherungspflicht). RWE and Heidelberg Materials, as major historical greenhouse gas emitters, must contribute proportionally to the damages suffered by farming communities in Pakistan as a result of the devastating 2022 floods.
This is consistent with the “polluter pays” principle, which recognizes that those responsible must bear the costs of environmental and climate change-induced harms. Industries that contribute to and accelerate the climate crisis, making profit from it for decades, must cover some of the costs of the resulting loss and damage.
The case of the Sindh farmers builds on aggregated science concerning the impact of anthropogenic climate change on rainfall patterns, in particular for the 2022 Pakistan floods. It will provide tailored data on the specific region through a commissioned expert opinion that substantiates the farmers’ claim.
The 43 farmers have sent a formal notice to the companies: they are asking the two companies to acknowledge their liability and their intention to compensate the claimants. They have four weeks to do so. Should they refuse to engage on these terms, a lawsuit will be filed by the end of the year.
FAQ
The case is about justice for the 43 farmers. It seeks to address real damage done to real people, who are seeking monetary compensation from those who caused and contributed to the damage. For medico international and ECCHR the aim is to support the farmers from Sindh in seeking accountability for the rights violations they have suffered as a result of the climate crisis.
The devastation caused by the 2022 floods in Pakistan stands as a stark reminder of how deeply climate-related damage can affect both individuals and entire societies. The compensation claim lodged by Pakistani farmers highlights the perspectives of those most affected by the crisis and carries their fight for justice to those responsible in Germany.
Their case will bring a new voice in a broader, transnational demand for a global legal framework that holds the perpetrators of the climate crisis accountable. Major polluters must take responsibility for the consequences of the damage their actions have caused.
The claim is addressed to RWE, one of the largest electricity producers in Europe, and Heidelberg Materials, one of the major cement producers worldwide.
The term “Carbon Majors” refers to companies that have contributed significantly to climate change. The term was coined by studies conducted by the Climate Accountability Institute, which found that just over 100 companies are responsible for nearly 70% of global historical industrial greenhouse gas emissions. RWE and Heidelberg Materials are two of them. As Carbon Majors, they are responsible for a significant proportion of global industrial greenhouse gas emissions.
Historically, both companies are among the top carbon emitters worldwide and among the two biggest polluters with headquarters and major operations in Germany. The latest studies utilizing the Carbon Majors methodology show that RWE is responsible for at least 0.68% and Heidelberg Materials 0.12% of global industrial emissions since 1965.
Major corporate emitters have thus far managed to avoid genuine accountability. Holding them to account in court is the only avenue left to ensure that those who contributed significantly to the crisis bear their fair share of its costs, instead of leaving all these costs to affected communities.
The case builds upon the legal foundations established in the Saúl Luciano Lliuya v. RWE case, where a German court accepted in principle that a major emitter could be held liable for climate-related damages abroad.
All 43 farmers involved come from Sindh Province, the region in southern Pakistan most affected by the unprecedented floods of 2022. They live in three different districts: Jacobabad, Dadu and Larkana. Their survival is based on the crops they produce on their small plots of land and they struggle to maintain their independence from large landowners and agricultural corporations. They have been exposed to changing weather patterns and the destruction of their livelihoods caused by climate change for many years.
The 43 farmers demanding compensation from RWE and Heidelberg Materials are supported by 10,000 farmers from their village communities. Their fight for climate justice highlights the situation of 33 million people affected by the 2022 flood disaster in Pakistan, as well as many other communities around the world that are already impacted by the climate crisis.
The 43 farmers in Pakistan are not alone facing RWE and Heidelberg Materials. More than 10,000 people in their villages are supporting them. They are assisted locally by the socio-medical aid organization HANDS Welfare Foundation and the trade-union federation NTUF.
The National Trade Union Federation (NTUF) empowers farmers in conflicts on land and labor rights. The HANDS Welfare Foundation works in rural Sindh communities on the transition to climate-adapted agriculture and supports village self-organization.
For decades, both organizations, supported by medico international, have been working to improve working and living conditions in Pakistan. In their pursuit of justice, medico international and the human rights organization ECCHR stand firmly by their side.
There is a broader struggle for climate justice, in which the people of Pakistan are also fighting, beyond the legal arena, to safeguard their livelihoods. They are combining legal action with political demands for support in reconstruction, food sovereignty, and debt relief.
Farmers are directly affected by the changing living conditions and the growing impossibility of sustaining life in their region. Without justice, their future prospects will become increasingly bleak.
At the same time, they are aware that their villages are only a few of many worldwide that are exposed to the same devastation in the context of the climate crisis: Many people in Pakistan, and across the world are threatened in their existence and human rights by the destructive fossil fuel based economic model and the climate crisis.
All people have the same right to live in dignity and self-determination, and to a healthy environment that makes this possible. Yet the impacts of the climate crisis are eroding these very foundations. The burden of climate-related damage is far from evenly shared: those who have contributed least to global warming are often the ones who suffer its effects most severely. The main culprits and beneficiaries of global warming—high-emission corporations and industrialised nations—are typically less affected and possess far greater means to shield themselves from disaster. But the climate crisis is not a natural phenomenon; it has perpetrators and profiteers who must be held accountable.
Taking the “polluter pays” principle seriously means recognizing their particular responsibility—not only to drastically and rapidly reduce emissions, but also to address the consequences of the crisis. This includes both material and immaterial damage, as well as climate-related human rights violations. Ultimately, climate justice means dismantling the structures that perpetuate inequality and injustice.
The Pakistan climate cost case is part of a growing movement for climate justice worldwide. Several actions have been filed for climate reparations against major polluters.
Most recently, on 23 October 2025, the Odette case was launched: 67 Odette typhoon survivors from island communities in the Philippines sent a formal notice to the fossil fuel company Shell demanding financial compensation for the losses and damage they experienced under Odette. It is an unprecedented lawsuit in the UK and globally, as the first civil claim to directly link polluting companies to deaths and personal injuries that have already happened in the global south.
ECCHR is already supporting residents of Pari Island in their lawsuit filed in Switzerland against HOLCIM. After a hearing that took place 3 September 2025 before the court of Zug, a decision on the admissibility of the case is expected to be reached soon.
In Belgium, through the farmer case, a farmer is asking the court to demand TotalEnergies to repair the damage he has suffered and make a financial contribution to the green transition. He is also asking judges to oblige the company to move away from fossil fuels in order to prevent future damage.
In Germany, the 28 May 2025 decision in the Saúl Luciano Lliuya v. RWE case confirmed the legal principle that major emitters can be liable for transboundary harms.
For more information on the legal claim, see ECCHR case page.
Solidarity matters. The Pakistani farmers will need plenty of it as they embark on this legal battle.
Their country has been hit especially hard by the impacts of the climate crisis, yet they know many others are facing the same fate. When people, organizations and initiatives share their story, talk about their struggle and spread the message, this support makes a difference.
Information materials about the case are available free of charge in English and German and can also be shared on social media. [links provided]. medico international and ECCHR, the supporting organizations in Germany, are available for talks and events.
Donations are also welcome, and they help fund medico international’s ongoing work in Pakistan, supporting community-led climate adaptation, education, and reconstruction projects.