Lawsuits Could Lead Courts to Make Initial Move on Climate Change

Sources said three cases involving climate change lawsuits could result in legal action on climate change taking place before Congress approves a climate bill or the U.S. joins an international climate treaty, Greenwire reported. Two appeals courts recently sided with parties filing lawsuits against utilities, oil companies, and other industries with GHG emissions.

Although the District Court for the Northern District of California dismissed a similar public nuisance lawsuit, Environmental Law Institute attorney Bruce Myers said the cases were compelling federal judges "to consider the harms from climate change right now." James May, a law professor at Widener University, said the issue will likely end up going to the Supreme Court. He noted that an array of factors "imputes upon these cases an almost irresistible quality for review" by the Supreme Court.

May added that the federal courts were "waiting to see what happens in Copenhagen, not as a legal matter but as a psychological matter that will influence just how much interest they give those cases. Without an accord and without a cap-and-trade bill, it's more likely that the court will grant en banc review."