A New Jersey lawsuit accusing major oil companies of contributing to climate change has been dismissed.
The lawsuit, spearheaded by New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin in 2022, targeted industry behemoths like ExxonMobil, Chevron, ConocoPhillips, Phillips 66, Shell, and the American Petroleum Institute.
It alleged that their operations exacerbated climate-related damages across the state.
According to the lawsuit:
Plaintiffs assert that Defendants have engaged in a decades-long campaign to discredit the science of global warming, conceal the dangers posed by their fossil fuel products, and misrepresent their efforts to combat climate change.
They claim that despite knowing about the adverse climate impacts of their products since the 1950s, Defendants failed to adequately warn consumers, the public, and decision-makers about these risks.
Defendants are alleged to have engaged in deceptive marketing practices, including promoting fossil fuel products as environmentally friendly or “clean,” while downplaying their role in contributing to climate change.
Plaintiffs contend that these deceptive campaigns have led to an increase in greenhouse gas pollution, resulting in sea-level rise, extreme weather events, and other climate change impacts that have affected New Jersey residents.
The decision, delivered on Wednesday by Superior Court Judge Douglas Hurd, concluded that these legally operating companies could not be held accountable for global emissions.
The dismissal, rendered with prejudice, firmly shuts the door on any possibility of reopening the case.
“Because Plaintiffs seek damages for alleged harms caused by interstate and international emissions and global warming, their claims cannot be governed by state law. Under our federal constitutional system, states cannot use their laws to resolve claims seeking redress for injuries allegedly caused by out-of-state and worldwide emissions,” Hurd said in his ruling.
Responding to the court’s decision, a spokesperson for the attorney general’s office expressed disappointment.
“We are disappointed in today’s decision, which allows some of the country’s most powerful companies to escape accountability for hiding the truth and misleading New Jerseyans about the role their products play in causing climate change,” a spokesperson for the attorney general’s office said in a statement to NJ Spotlight News.
“The trial court’s decision is wrong, and inconsistent with decisions in other states, and we are appealing immediately. We will not let companies get away with putting profit above public safety.”
The climate hysteria movement is finally being countered by facts and common sense, not by special interest funding.
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