ExxonMobil must go to trial over its downplaying of the climate crisis and its role in hastening it, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court found on Tuesday. The 18-page ruling strikes down Exxon’s claims that its free speech was being silenced by Attorney General Maura Healey’s lawsuit against the company and notes that “limiting enforcement actions by the Attorney General is particularly problematic.” Healey opened an investigation into Exxon potentially violating the state’s consumer protection statute and filed a lawsuit in 2019 over misleading consumers and investors about its climate risk.
Healey called Tuesday’s ruling “a resounding victory” and slammed Exxon’s “repeated attempts to stonewall our lawsuits.”
“We look forward to proceeding with our case and having our day in court to show how Exxon is breaking the law and to put an end to the deception once and for all,” Healey said in a statement. This is just the latest victory for Healey’s office and for all who seek to hold fossil fuel companies accountable. In March, the Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit ruled that Exxon must turn over all climate-related documents since 1976 to Healey. That includes internal documents.
Countless other Big Oil companies are facing lawsuits over their contributions to climate change. A Rhode Island lawsuit filed in 2018 lists nearly two dozen companies, including Exxon, Shell, Chevron, and BP. On Monday, the Court of Appeals for the First Circuit upheld a ruling that will allow the case to be tried in state court instead of federal. The Providence Journal noted that Rhode Island stands a better chance in state court to emerge victorious, as state courts tend to be more sympathetic to the nuances of cases like these. Similar rulings have been issued in at least three other states, reports the Guardian.
The uptick in climate lawsuits against major polluters follows a trend of everyone from regular folks whose industries are directly harmed by the oil and gas industry to politicians looking to hold companies accountable. It’s a positive development in terms of raising awareness about corporate misdeeds that wreak havoc on the planet. As one activist told Vox in 2019, this is a high-stakes strategy that could do more than just make Big Oil pay for its actions.
“These cases are one moment in time in something that’s going to be going on for 100 years. So whether they win or not, they’re part of that longer process and if they win, they’ll reshape the conversation,” Yale environmental history professor Paul Sabin told the outlet.