A major energy company asked the Supreme Court Wednesday to reconsider a state court decision that allowed the city of Honolulu to proceed with its lawsuit against the company for alleged climate change damages.
In October, the Hawaii Supreme Court control It opposes the companies’ efforts to dismiss the lawsuits and allow them to proceed on the grounds that federal law prohibits state-law claims. Companies including Chevron and Sunoco asked the Supreme Court to intervene Wednesday, noting that “it may be years before we have another opportunity to address this pressing problem.”
“This case asks the court to address a critical question that arises in all climate change litigation: whether federal law precludes state law claims seeking relief for injuries allegedly caused by interstate impacts. “This presents the only foreseeable opportunity in the near future to determine the impact of international greenhouse gas emissions on the global climate,” the petition states. “Following the decisions below, there is a clear conflict on that issue.”
A Chevron service station seen on July 9, 2009 in San Rafael, California. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
Last April, the Supreme Court denied energy companies’ requests to consider whether claims in cases in Colorado, Maryland, California, Hawaii and Rhode Island should be heard in federal court. (Related: Hawaii Supreme Court judge handling case against oil companies calls climate change an ‘existential threat’)
“Litigation in state court is not a constitutionally permissible means of establishing global climate change and energy policy,” Chevron attorney Theodore J. Boutras said in a statement. “As the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit dismissed a similar case in New York City, “such a far-reaching lawsuit is entirely beyond the scope of state law.”
Delaware Superior Court held In January, it announced that the state’s claims against oil companies for “damages resulting from out-of-state or global greenhouse gas emissions and interstate pollution” were preempted by the federal Clean Air Act. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit similarly noted in April 2021 that “global warming is a unique international concern that touches on issues of federalism and foreign policy,” and that New York City should be able to sanction energy companies under state law. The court ruled that no claim could be brought against.
The Hawaii Supreme Court ruled on February 7 that there is no state constitutional right to carry firearms in public, stating, “The spirit of aloha is that citizens routinely walk around carrying deadly weapons.” “It conflicts with the federally mandated lifestyle that allows daily activities. ”
Honolulu did not respond to a request for comment.
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