The article substantiates objective prerequisites for increasing the role of climate law as a response to global climate change and its consequences. For this purpose, an expert assessment of the trends in the formation and prospects for the development of climate law as a legal complex is given. The views of scientists on climate law as a new legal complex are analyzed. The author's position is to recognize climate law at this stage as a sub-branch of environmental law, which tends in the future to form and develop as an independent branch of law. Determining the place of climate law in the system of branches of law of the new generation, the author refers it to the branch of law of the fourth generation. The general and special features of climate law as an independent branch of law of this generation are highlighted, the sources of international and national climate law are revealed, the main institutions of climate law that are being formed now and in the future are structured
climate law; global climate change; legal complex; branch of law; institutions of climate law; principles of climate law; climate rights and obligations; climate legal responsibility