The defendants have repeatedly argued that Honolulu’s lawsuit should be moved to federal court. In filings, attorneys for the defendant companies said that state courts do not have jurisdiction to rule on interstate pollution.
The U.S. Supreme Court has rejected a request from oil and gas companies to consider whether a Hawaiian climate change lawsuit should be dismissed.
According to The Guardian, the lawsuit was first filed in 2020 by Honolulu government officials. Attorneys for the city and its board of water supply allege that a coalition of oil companies violated Hawaii law by failing to warn the public of the risks posed by fossil fuel-based products.
The defendants include Sunoco, Shell, and 15 other gas, oil, and energy companies.
Together, the defendants have repeatedly argued that Honolulu’s lawsuit should be moved to federal court. In filings, attorneys for the companies said that state courts do not have jurisdiction to rule on interstate pollution.
CBS News reports that oil and gas industry had tried arguing that emissions are a consequence of “billions of daily choices, over more than a century, by governments, companies and individuals about what types of fuel to use, and how to use them.”
Attorneys for the defendants said that the lawsuit is, in effect, trying to obtain damages for the “cumulative effect of worldwide emissions leading to global climate change.”
So far, the companies’ arguments have fallen short. In October 2023, for instance, the Hawaii Supreme Court determined that the lawsuit can proceed in state court; it also explicitly rejected the defendants’ argument that Honolulu is attempting to regulate interstate emissions through litigation.
“Plaintiffs’ state tort law claims do not seek to regulate emissions, and there is thus no ‘actual conflict’ between Hawaii tort law and the [federal Clean Air Act],” the Supreme Court wrote in its October decision. “These claims potentially regulate marketing conduct while the [Clean Air Act] regulates pollution.”
The oil and gas companies then asked the U.S. Supreme Court to review the decision.
“Rarely does a case of such extraordinary importance to one of the nation’s most vital industries come before this court,” lawyers for the companies wrote in their filing. “Energy companies that produce, sell, and market fossil fuels are facing numerous lawsuits in state courts across the nation seeking billions of dollars in damages for injuries allegedly caused by global climate change.”
The sheer scope of these challenges, the companies said, raises “a recurring question of extraordinary importance to the energy industry.”
In June, the Supreme Court asked the Biden administration for guidance; it responded by asking that the companies’ requests be dismissed, with government officials opining that it simply too early for the justices to intervene.
Sources
Supreme Court allows Hawaii climate change lawsuits against energy companies to move forward
US supreme court allows Hawaii lawsuit against fossil fuel firms’ misinformation
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