In September 2021, the German environmental organization Deutsche Umwelthilfe (DUH; Environmental Action Germany) initiated a legal action against Mercedes-Benz. This Mercedes-Benz lawsuit, filed in the Regional Court of Stuttgart, challenges the automaker’s commitment to phasing out passenger cars equipped with internal combustion engines (ICE) by 2030. DUH argues that Mercedes-Benz’s lack of a clear, irreversible commitment to this phase-out timeline constitutes a violation of the fundamental right to climate protection. The environmental group asserts that this inaction infringes upon the rights and freedoms of future generations, as a definitive phase-out is deemed necessary for Mercedes-Benz to meet its allocated carbon budget.
The foundation of this Mercedes-Benz lawsuit rests on the Paris Agreement and German Tort Law. DUH’s claim draws heavily from a prior landmark decision by the Federal Constitutional Court (BVerfG) concerning the German Climate Protection Act. In the case of Neubauer v. Germany, the court acknowledged Germany’s finite remaining CO2 emissions budget. The Mercedes-Benz lawsuit represents one of the pioneering civil proceedings to leverage this pivotal legal precedent.
Specifically, DUH is petitioning the court to mandate that Mercedes-Benz, by October 31, 2030, must cease placing ICE passenger cars on the market unless the company can demonstrate GHG neutrality for Scope 3 CO2 emissions arising from the use of these vehicles. Furthermore, DUH requests that Mercedes-Benz be prohibited from globally marketing ICE passenger cars between January 1, 2022, and October 31, 2030, if global Scope 3 CO2 emissions from their use exceed 511 million tons (based on an average mileage of 200,000 km), again, unless GHG neutrality can be proven. As an alternative, DUH seeks a court order compelling Mercedes-Benz to halt the introduction of new ICE passenger cars in the German market after October 31, 2030, contingent on the same GHG neutrality proof. It is important to note that this requested ban on new ICE car production predates the EU’s proposed effective ban of 2035, announced in July 2021.
However, in a decision issued on September 13, 2022, the Regional Court of Stuttgart dismissed the Mercedes-Benz lawsuit. The court reasoned that the responsibility for determining appropriate climate protection measures lies with the legislature, not individual civil actions. The court stated that such legislative decisions could not be preempted by private lawsuits in civil court. Despite this setback, Deutsche Umwelthilfe has publicly announced its intention to appeal the Regional Court’s decision before the Higher Regional Court of Stuttgart, indicating that this Mercedes-Benz lawsuit is far from over.
