We believe in fairness and the rule of law. As a wealthy country, we need to meet our climate targets with real action, as part of the global effort to limit warming to no more than 1.5C this century.

The Environmental Law Initiative and Lawyers for Climate Action NZ Inc have launched major legal proceedings against the Minister of Climate Change, alleging that the Government’s emissions reduction plan fails to fulfil basic requirements of the law.

In a landmark February ruling, the High Court found that Environment Southland failed its legal duty to monitor and protect wetlands—clarifying that all councils in Aotearoa must take proactive, effective action to safeguard these critical ecosystems. The decision sets a powerful precedent, reinforcing that inadequate monitoring, enforcement, or resource excuses will not meet statutory obligations under the Resource Management Act.

ELI is challenging the lawfulness of a nitrogen discharge consent issued by Environment Canterbury in the High Court this week. The consent to the MHV Water Ltd irrigation covers farming activities on more than 58,000 ha of land. 

Join Dr Mike Joy and ELI for a public talk on the future of freshwater in Canterbury.

We are challenging Environment Canterbury’s blanket rule allowing nitrate pollution in the Christchurch High Court this week.

“Canterbury holds the majority of Aotearoa's freshwater, but this public resource is significantly degraded,” says ELI’s Senior Researcher, Anna Sintenie. 

The Government’s amendment to s 53 of the Wildlife Act, which is a reaction to ELI’s recent High Court win, make the Act even more complicated and difficult to implement.

“I think most New Zealanders would be very uncomfortable with the idea that the Director-General of Conservation is put in the position of having to authorise the killing of often endangered wildlife."

The Environmental Law Initiative is taking the Minister of Oceans and Fisheries to court over the Hector’s and Māui Dolphin Threat Management Plan, saying it fails to adequately protect the dolphins from being killed by fishing.  

“Māui and Hector’s dolphins were once the most common dolphins in New Zealand waters until their rapid decline due to fishing-related deaths,” says ELI’s director, research and legal, Dr Matt Hall.

The National Party's proposed bill, which would outlaw the public from taking climate change litigation, is a dangerous attack on legal rights and our collective ability to take action on climate change.

We challenged DOC’s decisions to grant a permit and a consent authorising the incidental killing of wildlife during the Mt Messenger bypass project, and we won.

High Court finds Environment Southland failed to act against huge wetland losses. 

High Court victory for Environmental Law Initiative and Northland hapū in fisheries case.