The ruling was the result of years of efforts by activists and small island nations and initiated by Pacific Islands Students Fighting Climate Change, a group of young Pacific Islanders facing the existential threat of rising sea levels,

The International Court of Justice, the top United Nations court, decided Wednesday that countries would be violating international law if they fail to do their part to protect the planet.

Countries have very strong obligations under international law to cut climate pollution and prevent significant harm to the global climate that sustains human life.

The International Court of Justice’s ruling that countries have a legal duty to curb climate change was the result of a years-long campaign that began with university students.

A historic climate ruling by the world's highest court could make it legally riskier for fossil fuel companies to do business and embolden lawsuits against oil and gas expansion, experts say.

The top UN court will on Wednesday hand down a landmark global legal blueprint for tackling climate change that also sets out top polluters' responsibilities.

In a historic advisory opinion, the International Court of Justice ruled that access to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment is a fundamental human right.

The ruling’s scope is limited to two American activists, but it represents a striking, if tentative, blow to the president’s efforts to penalize and isolate the world’s highest criminal court.