Colorado’s Supreme Court delivered a win Monday to local governments that are suing the fossil fuel industry for the costs of dealing with climate change, allowing one of the oldest cases in the country to be heard in state court.
In a 5-2 decision, the judges rejected Exxon Mobil’s bid to overturn a lower court decision that gave the city and county of Boulder a green light to have their lawsuit against the companies litigated in state court, where the plaintiffs think they have a better chance of winning.
The win for the local governments comes as the Trump administration has targeted similar climate lawsuits across the country, with the Justice Department going to court earlier this month against Hawaii and Michigan in an effort to block the states from pursuing litigation.
The majority opinion in Colorado, written by Justice Richard Gabriel, rejected the industry’s contention that the lawsuit against Exxon and Suncor Energy involves global greenhouse gas emissions and should be barred by federal law.
