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Supreme Court Declines Republican States' Bid to Halt Climate Lawsuits Against Oil Companies

The decision allows Democratic-led states to proceed with lawsuits accusing energy firms of misleading the public about fossil fuel impacts on climate change.

FILE - The Supreme Court is seen in the distance, framed through columns of the U.S. Senate at the Capitol in Washington, Feb. 20, 2025. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)
FILE - The Supreme Court at sunset in Washington, Feb. 13, 2016. (AP Photo/Jon Elswick, File)
Front row, from left to right, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court John Roberts, Justice Elena Kagan, Justice Brett Kavanaugh, Justice Amy Coney Barrett, and retired Justice Anthony Kennedy attend U.S. President Donald Trump's address to a joint session of Congress at the U.S. Capitol on March 04, 2025, in Washington, DC.
The U.S. Supreme Court is pictured in Washington, U.S., October 8, 2024. REUTERS/Annabelle Gordon/File Photo

Overview

  • The Supreme Court rejected a lawsuit from 19 Republican-led states seeking to block climate litigation by five Democratic-led states against oil and gas companies.
  • Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito dissented, arguing the court should have considered the case under its original jurisdiction over state disputes.
  • The lawsuits, filed in state courts by California, Connecticut, Minnesota, New Jersey, and Rhode Island, allege that energy companies knowingly misled the public about the environmental risks of fossil fuels.
  • Republican states argued that the lawsuits could disrupt federal energy policy and impose significant costs on the national energy system.
  • The court's decision follows earlier refusals to intervene in related cases, allowing state-level litigation to move forward against major energy firms like ExxonMobil and Shell.