Federal Court appeal tests the legal limits of climate responsibility
The Full Federal Court will hear Torres Strait Islanders’ appeal against a ruling that the Commonwealth owes no duty of care for climate-related cultural loss.
A landmark claim against the Commonwealth over the impact of climate change on the seafaring people of the Torres Strait will head to the Full Federal Court on Tuesday.
Guda Maluyligal traditional owners Uncle Pabai Pabai and Uncle Paul Pabai, from the islands of Saibai and Boigu, failed at trial in 2025 when Justice Michael Wigney found the government did not owe them a duty of care.
Wigney said the islanders faced a bleak future due to rising seas, but found that “loss of custom” was not a recognised category of damage in negligence law. He said it was not up to him, “as a single judge”, to make such a ruling.
The appeal will be heard in Melbourne over four days before Chief Justice Debbie Mortimer, Justice Craig Colvin and Justice Nicholas Owens.
