Manufacturers: Petition Exposes Bad Faith Behind California Climate Lawsuits

Manufacturers: Petition Exposes Bad Faith Behind California Climate Lawsuits
NAM’s Kelly: Integrity of CA Lawsuits “is highly questionable”

Washington, DC – The following statement was released by Linda Kelly, senior vice president and general counsel of the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) and lead on the NAM’s Manufacturers’ Accountability Project (MAP), in response to newly-exposed evidence that at least seven California municipalities failed to disclose in their municipal bond prospectuses the same climate-related risks as they detail in lawsuits against energy manufacturers:

“The petition filed by ExxonMobil is a move in defense of all manufacturers against lawsuits made in bad faith and choreographed by politically motivated plaintiffs’ attorneys and public officials. These seven California municipalities are taking energy manufacturers to court, blaming them for catastrophes they are sure will happen. But when it came time to secure money from investors, these cities failed to mention the certain risks they cite in their lawsuits. Unsurprisingly, familiar names like plaintiffs’ attorney Matt Pawa appear in a number of these lawsuits, and in several instances, the same officials signed off on both the bond and legal filings.

“The level of potential coordination is suspect and the conflicting representations the parties appear to have made suggest two possible conclusions: either the claims against energy manufacturers are frivolous, or the municipalities have made misleading, and perhaps fraudulent, statements to investors. Either way, the integrity of the lawsuits and the government officials and lawyers behind them has been called into question.

“The purpose of the MAP is to pull back the curtain on politically motivated lawsuits against manufacturers and to connect the dots between the players who are orchestrating this abuse of the legal system. The recent filing will go a long way toward achieving that goal.”

More information:

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The Manufacturers’ Accountability Project (MAP) will set the record straight and highlight the concerted, coordinated campaign being waged by plaintiffs’ lawyers, public officials, deep-pocketed foundations and other activists who have sought to undermine and weaken manufacturers in the United States. This campaign will pull back the curtain to expose these efforts and to hold key actors accountable in order to protect our members and American manufacturing workers. The MAP is a project of the NAM’s Manufacturers’ Center for Legal Action (MCLA), which serves as the leading voice of manufacturers in the nation’s courts. Visit us at mfgaccountabilityproject.org.