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The Critical Role of Empirical Research in Environmental Law

Posted by gchapron on February 23, 2024

by Julien Bétaille, Associate Professor, Toulouse Capitole University Law School & Member of the Institut universitaire de France

After more than half a century of existence, environmental law –considered as the set of legal rules with the explicit purpose to protect the environment – is facing a paradox: while environmental legal norms have never been so sophisticated, especially in the EU, ecological crises have never been so acute. This gives rise to some other authors not hesitating to deduce outright that environmental law is ineffective[1]. Although this kind of conclusion is certainly too hasty, it has the merit of bringing to the front the methodological challenges of Empirical Legal Research (ELR):how can the question of the effectiveness of environmental standards be addressed? What methods could be used to better understand the influence of legal factors on environmental quality? Environmental law cannot – one could argue – be studied only doctrinally as its explicit aim – protecting the environment – is so paramount. The empirical issue of whether environmental law actually contributes to this aim is the backdrop of any doctrinal question.