Recently, the Austrian Constitutional Court had to decide on several cases related to climate change and the environment. None of the cases were successful.

The first case was decided on 27 June 2023 (G 123/2023-12). In a so-called "individual application" based on Article 140 para 1 no 1 lit c Federal Constitutional Act ("B-VG"), several children asked the Constitutional Court to review § 3 of the Austrian "Climate Protection Act" and declare it unconstitutional on the grounds that it violates several constitutionally guaranteed rights. Among other things, the children pointed to a violation of Article 1 of the Federal Constitutional Law on the Rights of the Child. In its decision, the Court confirmed its strict jurisprudence on the admissibility requirements for this type of application and rejected the children's application on the grounds that the scope of the challenge was too narrow.

The second case was decided on the same day (27 June 2023, G 139/2021-11). It is also an "individual application" based on Article 140 para 1 no 1 lit c Federal Constitutional Act ("B-VG") and contains a request to review Article 3 of the Climate Protection Act. The case differs from the case cited above in that the applicant in the latter case was not a child. In addition, the applicant's argumentation followed different lines. Nevertheless, the Court did not accept the application, but rejected it because the applicant had not specified his concerns, which is a procedural requirement (according to the strict case law on the admissibility requirements in such cases).

The last application is a very recent one, dated 12 March 2024 (A 17/2023-19). The case concerned a state liability claim for breach of obligations to implement EU soil protection legislation. The Court did not uphold the claim, but declared it inadmissible because the claimant had failed to establish with sufficient clarity that the conditions for state liability were met.