The U.S. Supreme Court agreed Monday to hear a landmark climate change case brought by Boulder and Boulder County against Big Oil, possibly offering a final word on whether local communities can seek payback for global warming damages through the courts.
The Colorado Supreme Court earlier said communities could at least try, and oil industry executives and conservative lawmakers have demanded a final SCOTUS slap-back of the idea ever since. They predicted a conservative majority would reject the idea that judges can decide who pays for the impacts of global warming.
“The Supreme Court’s decision to review Boulder’s climate lawsuit is a decisive step toward resolving conflicting rulings nationwide and reaffirming that climate policy belongs with elected policymakers — not the courts,” said Phil Goldberg, special counsel to the trade group Manufacturers’ Accountability Project. “A Supreme Court review will bring much-needed clarity and uniformity to this issue and help ensure that fundamental policy decisions about energy and climate are made by the appropriate branches of government. We look forward to the court’s consideration of these critical questions.”
Boulder and Boulder and San Miguel counties originally sued Suncor and Exxon Mobil in 2018 over their contributions to climate change. The lawsuit followed examples in New York and California, but it was the first instance of the fight moving inland, and a precursor to dozens of lawsuits since. Suncor operates the Commerce City refinery that emits large amounts of carbon dioxide and has also been fined repeatedly by state officials for other pollution violations.
Boulder officials and attorneys said they hoped the Supreme Court justices would hear their case openly, and allow Colorado courts to move forward addressing the issues in what they call a seminal legal conflict.
“The oil companies have tried every avenue to delay our climate accountability case or move it to an out-of-state court system,” said Boulder County Commissioner Ashley Stolzmann. “As everyone continues to face rising costs that put budgets under pressure, we must hold oil companies accountable for the significant harm they’ve caused our communities. We move forward with renewed energy and purpose for the next step toward justice.”
“Local communities are living with the mounting costs of climate change. The Supreme Court should affirm Colorado’s right to hold these companies accountable for the harm they have caused in Colorado,” Boulder Mayor Aaron Brockett said.
This is a developing story and more comments will be added throughout the day.
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