Protecting the Right to Environment: The Roles of Judicial Commissions and Special Masters

December 2024
Citation:
54
ELR 11058
Issue
12
Author
Umair Saleem

This Article addresses the pressing need for six “green states”—New York, Hawaii, Illinois, Massachusetts, Montana, and Pennsylvania—to adopt quasi-judicial mechanisms for enforcement of their constitutional right to environment. It analyzes the challenges and limitations of traditional litigation in enforcing this right, and compares the special master system in the United States with environmental judicial commissions in Pakistan. It advocates for an expanded role of special masters in environmental litigation with diverse functions, including investigation, mediation, environmental monitoring, technical and scientific advisory, public participation, and consensus-building among different stakeholders, to ensure comprehensive and effective environmental protection. It argues that courts in these green states could pioneer this approach, setting a precedent for other jurisdictions internationally and ultimately strengthening environmental protection globally.

Dr. Umair Saleem has an S.J.D. and LL.M. in environmental law from Pace University’s Elisabeth Haub School of Law.