The United States Supreme Court denied in a summary order on Monday energy companies' requests to dismiss the lawsuits related to climate change damages under state laws. Energy giants, among which were Chevron Corp, Exxon Mobil Corp and Shell PLC, were pushing for the cases to be brought to federal court instead of state courts, as they believed that dealing with such lawsuits would be more favorable under federal laws when compared to state laws.
Previously, a number of local governments in the United States filed lawsuits against energy firms, claiming that the latter has continued to knowingly harm the environment in profit pursuit. "This was the right decision, and it is time to prepare for trial," the Wall Street Journal cited Sara Gross, an attorney with the Baltimore City Law Department, as saying.
"Climate change is an issue of national and global magnitude that requires a coordinated federal policy response, not a disjointed patchwork of lawsuits in state courts across multiple states," Chevron representative, Theodore Boutrous, told the Hill.
