Washington– Washington (AFP) – supreme court The oil and gas company said Monday it will listen to oil and gas companies trying to block lawsuits seeking to hold the industry responsible for billions of dollars in damages linked to climate change.
The court, with a conservative majority, agreed to consider a case from Boulder, Colorado A series of lawsuits Alleging that the companies deceived the public about how fossil fuels contributed Climate change.
Governments across the country have sought compensation totaling billions of dollars, arguing that it is necessary to help pay for rebuilding after wildfires, rising sea levels and severe storms made worse by climate change. Lawsuits come amid A wave of legal action In states including California, Hawaii and New Jersey And all over the world And seek to benefit from procedures through the courts.
Suncor Energy and ExxonMobil appealed to the Supreme Court after the Colorado Supreme Court allowed the Boulder case to proceed. The companies say emissions are a national issue that should be heard in federal court, where similar lawsuits have been dropped.
“Using state law to address global climate change represents a serious threat to one of our nation’s most important sectors,” the lawyers wrote.
President Donald Trump’s administration stepped in to support the companies and urged the justices to overturn the Colorado Supreme Court’s decision, saying it meant “every district in the country could sue basically anyone in the world for contributing to global climate change.”
Trump, a Republican, criticized the lawsuits in an executive order, and the Justice Department sought to head off some of them in court.
Boulder lawyers said the lawsuit is still in its early stages and should remain in state court. “There is no constitutional bar that prevents states from redressing damages within the state caused by out-of-state conduct, whether that be the negligent design of an automobile or the sale of asbestos,” they wrote.
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