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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Environment
Patrick Greenfield and Phoebe Weston

Revealed: how Wall Street is making millions betting against green laws

Illustration showing a cut-out of rocky land with black and yellow circles showing the amounts of money won in different ISDS cases
Investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS) is an area of international law that allows corporations to sue countries for actions that hurt their profits. Illustration: Israel Vargas

Financial speculators are investing in a growing number of lawsuits against governments over environmental laws and other regulations that affect profits, often generating lucrative awards, the Guardian has found.

For a long time, litigation finance thrived primarily in the realm of car crashes and employment claims. “Had an accident that wasn’t your fault?” was the industry’s billboard catchphrase, offering to finance lawsuits in exchange for a cut of any payout.

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