• What happened: A Delaware judge has dismissed numerous claims filed by the state’s attorney general in a climate change lawsuit attempting to hold the fossil fuel industry responsible for air pollution within the state. 
  • Democratic Attorney General Kathleen Jennings filed the lawsuit against major oil companies in 2020, partnering with a California-based law firm known for climate nuisance litigation.
• Dig deeper: The judge noted that out-of-state emissions were beyond the scope of the court and assertions related to out-of-state or global greenhouse emissions and interstate pollution were preempted by the federal Clean Air Act
  
• How we got here: The U.S. Supreme Court’s refusal of several requests to transfer climate nuisance cases to federal courts leaves state judges at the wheel in this widespread litigation. 
• What happens next: While certain claims were dismissed, including those tied to out-of-state or global emissions, the judge allowed the state to pursue a general claim for environmental-based public nuisance and trespass on state-owned land.
• TLR Thoughts: Public nuisance lawsuits as a means to circumvent the legislative process show no signs of slowing down. Issues like climate change that impact national public policy should be addressed by the appropriate legislative body, not individual state courts. 

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