Current:Home > reviewsMaryland Climate Ruling a Setback for Oil and Gas Industry -Visionary Wealth Guides
Maryland Climate Ruling a Setback for Oil and Gas Industry
View
Date:2025-04-17 02:08:49
A lawsuit for damages related to climate change brought by the city of Baltimore can be heard in Maryland state courts, a federal appeals court ruled on Friday. The decision is a setback for the fossil fuel industry, which had argued that the case should be heard in federal court, where rulings in previous climate cases have favored the industry.
In a unanimous ruling, a three-judge panel of the Fourth U.S. Circuit of Appeals dismissed the industry’s argument that the lawsuit was more appropriate for federal court because the damage claims should be weighed against federal laws and regulations that permitted the industry to extract oil and gas, the primary cause of the greenhouse gas emissions that drive global warming.
Pending any further appeals, the ruling leaves the door open for the case to proceed in a Maryland court, where the city is relying on state laws covering a number of violations, including public nuisance, product liability and consumer protection.
The court’s decision Friday is the first federal appeals court to rule in a string of climate cases under appeal across the country over the question of federal or state jurisdiction. It affirmed an earlier ruling by a lower federal court that the case was best heard in state court.
The ruling is not binding on other pending appeals, but legal scholars say that other federal appeals courts will take notice of the findings.
Although the ruling blocks one avenue of defense for the industry, the judges did not foreclose other possible challenges related to the question of jurisdiction. There was no immediate indication from the industry of whether further legal options might be considered or what those might be.
Baltimore’s top legal officer, acting City Solicitor Dana Moore, hailed the ruling as a rebuke to the industry.
“We were confident in our case and are grateful that the Court of Appeals agreed,” Moore said in a prepared statement. “We look forward to having a jury hear the facts about the fossil fuel companies’ decades-long campaign of deception and their attempt to make Baltimore’s residents, workers, and businesses pay for all the climate damage they’ve knowingly caused.”
The foundation for the appeals court ruling was laid last year when lawyers representing the city argued before the appeals court that the foundation of the case rested on the promotion of a harmful product by the fossil fuel industry. That equated to violations of state product liability laws best decided by state courts, the city’s lawyers argued.
The essence of the fossil fuel companies’ argument was that much of the oil and gas was extracted from federal land under permits issued by the federal government so the allegations must be resolved under federal law.
Ann Carlson, an environmental law professor at the Emmett Institute on Climate Change and the Environment, part of the University of California, Los Angeles’ School of Law, said the ruling is significant because it steamrolls one of the primary roadblocks used by the industry in an attempt to block the city’s day in court.
“This ruling removes an obstacle to the plaintiffs moving forward in state courts and puts these cases much, much closer to a trial where the facts and the truth will emerge,” said Carlson, who has done limited pro bono work on the Baltimore case.
Carlson called the ruling “well-reasoned” and “solid,” so that other appellate courts considering similar climate cases could take notice.
“There could be some influence,” she said. “The issues are much the same and this ruling could provide some guidance to the other courts.”
The Baltimore case, filed two years ago, seeks to hold 26 fossil fuel companies financially accountable for the threats posed by climate change. The lawsuit alleges that fossil fuel companies, including Exxon, Chevron and Phillips 66, knowingly sold dangerous products for decades and failed to take steps to reduce that harm.
Baltimore’s lawsuit claims that the 26 companies are responsible for approximately 15 percent of the carbon dioxide emissions in the five decades from 1965 to 2015.
Among the consequences of that increase in atmospheric carbon have been extreme weather events and sea level rise, both particular threats to Baltimore.
“As a direct and proximate consequence of defendants’ wrongful conduct … flooding and storms will become more frequent and more severe, and average sea level will rise substantially along Maryland’s coast, including in Baltimore,” the city argued in its suit.
The Baltimore case joins more than a dozen lawsuits—including claims filed by the state of Rhode Island and cities and counties in California, Colorado, New York and Washington State—that are currently pending to hold fossil fuel companies financially accountable for their role in creating climate change and for deceiving the public about the impact of their business practices.
The industry is trying to steer the climate cases into the federal courts, where the U.S. Supreme Court could ultimately end up ruling on the issue.
veryGood! (3)
Related
- IRS recovers $4.7 billion in back taxes and braces for cuts with Trump and GOP in power
- Sour Patch Kids Oreos? Peeps Pepsi? What’s behind the weird flavors popping up on store shelves
- Kansas City Chiefs CEO's Wife and Daughter Speak Out Amid Harrison Butker Controversy
- Fry's coupons from USA TODAY's coupons page can help you save on groceries
- Arkansas State Police probe death of woman found after officer
- Nordstrom Rack's Top 100 Deals Include Major Scores Up to 73% Off: Longchamp, Free People & More
- These California college students live in RVs to afford the rising costs of education
- Plan to boost Uber and Lyft driver pay in Minnesota advances in state Legislature
- Tree trimmer dead after getting caught in wood chipper at Florida town hall
- Q&A: Kevin Costner on unveiling his Western saga ‘Horizon’ at Cannes
Ranking
- Scoot flight from Singapore to Wuhan turns back after 'technical issue' detected
- Edwards leads Wolves back from 20-point deficit for 98-90 win over defending NBA champion Nuggets
- Whoopi Goldberg reflects on family, career in new memoir Bits and Pieces
- NBA Game 7 schedule today: Everything to know about Sunday's elimination playoff games
- The Super Bowl could end in a 'three
- Orioles legend Cal Ripken Jr. thinks Jackson Holliday may have needed more time in the minors
- Why tech billionaires are trying to create a new California city
- Michael Cohen to face more grilling as Trump’s hush money trial enters its final stretch
Recommendation
Justice Department, Louisville reach deal after probe prompted by Breonna Taylor killing
Taylor Swift performs 'Max Martin Medley' in Sweden on final night of Stockholm Eras Tour: Watch
TikTokers swear they can shift to alternate realities in viral videos. What's going on?
The video of Diddy assaulting Cassie is something you can’t unsee. It’s OK not to watch.
Taylor Swift makes surprise visit to Kansas City children’s hospital
Helicopter carrying Iran’s president suffers a ‘hard landing,’ state TV says, and rescue is underway
Greg Olsen embraces role as pro youth sports dad and coach, provides helpful advice
Dive team finds bodies of 2 men dead inside plane found upside down in Alaska lake