ESG Litigation Guide

The litigation landscape in South Africa with regard to Environment, Social and Governance (ESG) shows that the country is a current hotspot for climate litigation on the African continent, with more litigation expected to arise against government institutions and private companies. The increase in environmental litigation has been especially prevalent in the mining, natural resources and energy sectors, due to the impact of operations on surrounding communities. South Africa is in the midst of its worst national power crisis, with a shortage of electricity generation capacity resulting in regular and consistent power blackouts. Coal plays a significant role in South Africa’s electricity generation but there has been an increase in litigation by civil society organisations to prevent coal developments, on the basis of breaches of constitutional rights such as the right to life and the right to a healthy environment. South Africa also has a strong focus on redressing historical racial inequalities, and there has been active enforcement of broad-based black economic empowerment policies to promote meaningful participation of black people in the economy. Companies are urged to take ESG responsibilities seriously so as to avoid exposure to ESG litigation, which is clearly on the rise in South Africa.