The German Environmental Aid can take the car manufacturer Mercedes to court, but apparently nothing more. The environmentalists demand that Mercedes must be converted to suit the climate. The judges accept the lawsuit, but consider the matter to be better accommodated elsewhere.
The Stuttgart regional court reacted with skepticism to the climate lawsuit brought by the German Environmental Aid against Mercedes-Benz. Judge Bernd Rzymann said the lawsuit was admissible but the board saw significant problems. It is the task of the legislature to determine when which vehicles may be produced. The 17th Civil Chamber wants to announce on September 13 how the proceedings will continue - among other things, a decision or a submission of the issue to the European Court of Justice is possible.
The environmentalists are calling for a climate-friendly conversion of the car manufacturer. They are particularly concerned with reducing carbon dioxide emissions - in line with the Paris Climate Agreement and the German Climate Protection Act. Among other things, Mercedes should no longer be allowed to sell conventional combustion engines that emit greenhouse gases from November 2030.
DUH lawyer Remo Klinger said greenhouse gas emissions cannot be recovered. Therefore, the court must decide today. The environmentalists feel that their personal rights have been violated. The court complained that this could not be specified today. It is difficult to assert individual protection.
Mercedes-Benz lawyer Markus Rieder argued that the company is already doing more than the law requires. A spokeswoman had emphasized in advance that the company wants to become fully electric by the end of this decade, where market conditions allow. The CO2 footprint per car should therefore be reduced by more than half by 2030 compared to 2020. The spokeswoman said after the hearing: "We welcome the fact that the district court shares the essential arguments of our legal opinion."
DUH Federal Managing Director Jürgen Resch spoke of an "encouraging start to the process". According to its own statements, the DUH is also suing BMW and the energy company Wintershall Dea in addition to Mercedes. Last year, the DUH, together with Greenpeace, initiated the first proceedings against corporations after the climate decision of the Federal Constitutional Court. In the civil proceedings of the DUH, the hearing before the Stuttgart court is now the first in the first instance. The environmentalists made it clear that they plan to go through the responsible authorities.
