Defendants in City & County of Honolulu v. Sunoco LP filed two petitions for a writ of certiorari requesting the U.S. Supreme Court decide whether Honolulu can pursue its state law climate claims against energy manufacturers. The key question is whether federal law, under the constitutional structure of American federalism and the Clean Air Act,…
Late last year, MAP Special Counsel Phil Goldberg moderated a Lawyers for Civil Justice panel, “The New Nuisance: The Re-Invention of Nuisance Law,” on recent attempts to dramatically expand the legal theory of public nuisance. The panel examined how current public nuisance actions—including those over climate change—are completely detached from the traditional uses of the…
Companies in the oil and gas industry that have been sued in the climate change cases have been filing their motions to dismiss, now that many of the cases have been officially sent to state courts. These motions explain why the law does not support these claims. In each case—from those brought by New Jersey,…
The flaws of municipal litigation to combat climate change was the theme of the June 15 Washington Legal Foundation webinar, which was titled “Climate Change Regulation by Litigation: Wise Use, or Misuse, of State and Local Resources.” The panel discussion featured MAP Special Counsel Phil Goldberg, who focused on the lack of any legal or…
A menu of public policy options and private sector-led solutions exist to reduce carbon emissions. That was the central takeaway according to a panel of experts who participated in a May 18th panel hosted by the Georgetown University Center for Business and Public Policy. The panel, which included speakers with legal, legislative, and regulatory backgrounds,…
On May 5th, a Pennsylvania appellate court unanimously held that the tort of public nuisance does not make product manufacturers liable for downstream risks associated with products. The decision carries important implications for public nuisance litigation against manufacturers of products in other sectors, including in climate litigation. In the case, Atlantic Richfield Company, et al….
The U.S. Supreme Court has declined to review Suncor Energy (U.S.A.) Inc. v. Board of County Commissioners of Boulder County and related petitions asking the Court to review federal appellate court rulings that sent climate tort lawsuits against American energy producers to state court. MAP Special Counsel Phil Goldberg pointed out in a statement reacting…
RealClear Energy recently published an op-ed by Phil Goldberg, special counsel to the Manufacturers’ Accountability Project. The Supreme Court is considering whether to hear cases regarding the proper jurisdiction for climate lawsuits—federal or state court. Goldberg’s op-ed details the history of this litigation campaign; he noted previous administrations’ positions and past federal court decisions substantiating…
Over the past several months, the National Association of Manufacturers has filed amicus briefs in the U.S. Supreme Court, where many of the climate cases are now being appealed on the question of whether climate lawsuits against oil and gas companies should be heard in federal or state court. The Court has not decided whether…
The U.S. Supreme Court has asked the U.S. Solicitor General to file a brief expressing the United States’ views as to whether the Court should grant review of Suncor Energy (U.S.A.) Inc. v. Board of County Commissioners of Boulder County. As explained in a recent MAP Legal Backgrounder, the petition asks the Court to decide…