{"id":2577263,"date":"2026-03-07T16:47:01","date_gmt":"2026-03-07T21:47:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/supreme-court-will-hear-lawsuit-over-blaming-oil-companies-for-climate-change\/"},"modified":"2026-03-07T16:50:12","modified_gmt":"2026-03-07T21:50:12","slug":"supreme-court-will-hear-lawsuit-over-blaming-oil-companies-for-climate-change","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/supreme-court-will-hear-lawsuit-over-blaming-oil-companies-for-climate-change\/","title":{"rendered":"Supreme Court Will Hear Lawsuit Over Blaming Oil Companies for Climate Change"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">24<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fsupreme-court-will-hear-lawsuit-over-blaming-oil-companies-for-climate-change%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2577263&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The Supreme Court agreed to hear Suncor Energy Inc. v. County Commissioners of Boulder County, a climate-change liability case that asks whether <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >federal law preempts state-law claims<\/a> for injuries allegedly caused by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/goldman-sachs-commits-to-reach-net-zero-carbon-emissions-by-2030\/\" title=\"Goldman Sachs Commits To Reach Net-Zero Carbon Emissions By 2030\">greenhouse-gas emissions<\/a>. At issue is whether interstate and international emissions can be addressed in state courts, and whether the Court has the jurisdiction to hear such claims. The Colorado Supreme Court had previously ruled that a federal-preemption argument could block Boulder\u2019s lawsuit, suggesting that federal interests in interstate pollution and energy policy might preempt state relief. Oil-and-gas companies contend that allowing state-law remedies for pollution from outside the state would overstep the federal constitutional framework, while Boulder argues the case involves local harms and fairness, noting that climate change is already affecting the community and its taxpayers. The Trump governance supported the oil companies, warning that many localities could sue worldwide for climate-related injuries if the Boulder case proceeds. The Court\u2019s decision to hear the case could have broad implications for similar lawsuits against fossil-fuel producers, with arguments expected this fall.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<section> \t\t\t\t<script>console.log(\"ad slot (AC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC2)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC3)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC4)\")<\/script><\/p>\n<p>The Supreme Court said on Feb. 23 that it will consider a complaint from oil and gas companies over lawsuits trying to blame them for climate change.<\/p>\n<p>On Feb. 23, members of the Supreme Court added one new case to their docket: Suncor Energy Inc. v. County Commissioners of Boulder County, according to a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.scotusblog.com\/2026\/02\/supreme-court-agrees-to-hear-case-on-colorado-dispute-over-climate-change\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">report<\/a> from SCOTUSblog.<\/p>\n<p>At issue is &ldquo;whether <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/scotus-takes-up-oil-companies-challenge-to-colorado-citys-climate-lawfare\/\" title=\"SCOTUS Takes Up Challenge To Colorado City&#039;s Climate Lawfare\">federal law precludes state-law claims seeking relief<\/a> for injuries allegedly caused by the effects of interstate and international greenhouse-gas emissions on the global climate,&rdquo; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.scotusblog.com\/cases\/case-files\/suncor-energy-inc-v-county-commissioners-of-boulder-county\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">according<\/a> to the website.<\/p>\n<p>The case also has implications for &ldquo;whether this court has statutory and Article III jurisdiction to hear this case,&rdquo; referring to the part of the U.S. Constitution that establishes the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/i-researched-judicial-ethics-rules-for-years-heres-why-the-alito-recusal-calls-are-ridiculous\/\" title=\"After Extensive Research, Why Demanding Alito&#039;s Recusal Seems Absurd\">federal judicial branch<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>The Colorado Supreme Court previously ruled that the oil and gas firms&rsquo; efforts to get the case dismissed relied on the argument &ldquo;that a vague federal interest over interstate pollution, climate change, and energy policy must preempt Boulder&rsquo;s claims.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p> <script type=\"text\/javascript\"> \t\t\tif ( getCookie( \"ff_subbed\" ) ) { \t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"anyclipvideo\").remove() \t\t\t} else { \t\t\t\tdocument.addEventListener(\"DOMContentLoaded\", function() { \t\t\t\t\tfunction loadAnyclip() { \t\t\t\t\t\tconst container=document.getElementById(\"anyclipvideo\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!container) return;  \t\t\t\t\t\tconst script=document.createElement(\"script\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.src=\"https:\/\/player.anyclip.com\/anyclip-widget\/lre-widget\/prod\/v1\/src\/lre.js\"; \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.setAttribute(\"pubname\", \"westernjournalcom\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.setAttribute(\"widgetname\", \"001w000001jULVcAAO_M12924\");  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ append inside the container so player shows in correct spot \t\t\t\t\t\tcontainer.appendChild(script); \t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\tfunction findPreviousParagraph(selector, x) { \t\t\t\t\t\tconst targetElement=document.querySelector(selector); \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!targetElement) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.warn(\"Target element not found.\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\treturn null; \t\t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Get all <\/p>\n<p> elements in order as they appear in the document \t\t\t\t\t\tlet paragraphs=Array.from(document.querySelectorAll(\"p\"));  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Find the index of the last <\/p>\n<p> before the target element \t\t\t\t\t\tlet targetIndex=paragraphs.findIndex(p=> p.compareDocumentPosition(targetElement) & Node.DOCUMENT_POSITION_PRECEDING);  \t\t\t\t\t\tif (targetIndex===-1 || targetIndex <x) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.warn(\"Not enough paragraphs before the target element.\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\treturn null; \t\t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\treturn paragraphs[targetIndex - x]; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Set up IntersectionObserver \t\t\t\t\tfunction observeElement(element) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!element) return;  \t\t\t\t\t\tconst observer=new IntersectionObserver( \t\t\t\t\t\t\t(entries)=> { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tentries.forEach(entry=> { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tif (entry.isIntersecting) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log(\"Paragraph is now visible:\", entry.target.textContent.trim()); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tloadAnyclip(); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tobserver.disconnect(); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t}, \t\t\t\t\t\t\t{ threshold: 0.5 } \/\/ Adjust threshold as needed \t\t\t\t\t\t);  \t\t\t\t\t\tobserver.observe(element); \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Find the 1st paragraph before #anyclipvideo and observe it \t\t\t\t\tlet paragraphToObserve=findPreviousParagraph(\"#anyclipvideo\", 2); \t\t\t\t\tobserveElement(paragraphToObserve); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> <\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">This morning, the Supreme Court granted certiorari in Suncor Energy v. Boulder.<\/p>\n<p>The city&rsquo;s lawsuit is trying to sidestep the democratic process and dictate the entire country&rsquo;s national energy policy through state courts. Other locales have filed dozens of copycat lawsuits&hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/rcjQmlnrJd\">pic.twitter.com\/rcjQmlnrJd<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Carrie Severino (@JCNSeverino) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/JCNSeverino\/status\/2026026622906732741?\">February 23, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>In August, the companies asked the federal Supreme Court to intervene, contending that the lawsuit &ldquo;provides the Court with its best opportunity yet to resolve one of the most important questions currently pending in the lower courts.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Energy companies that produce and sell fossil fuels,&rdquo; the petition from the firms said, &ldquo;are facing numerous lawsuits in state courts across the Nation seeking billions of dollars in damages for injuries allegedly caused by the contribution of greenhouse-gas emissions to global climate change.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;But as the Court has recognized for over a century,&rdquo; the companies added, &ldquo;the structure of our constitutional system does not permit a State to provide relief under state law for injuries allegedly caused by pollution emanating from outside the State.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>The Associated Press <a href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/supreme-court-climate-change-lawsuits-c8982af07855a7a6379e1313ebb71895\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">reported<\/a> that the Trump administration has offered their support to the oil companies.<\/p>\n<p>The administration urged the Supreme Court to side with the firms, contending that &ldquo;every locality in the country could sue essentially anyone in the world for contributing to global climate change&rdquo; under the Colorado Supreme Court decision.<\/p>\n<p>On the other hand, lawyers for Boulder said the case belongs at the state level.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;There is no constitutional bar to states addressing in-state harms caused by out-of-state conduct, be it the negligent design of an automobile or sale of asbestos,&rdquo; the attorneys contended.<\/p>\n<p>Jonathan Koehn, the director of climate initiatives for Boulder, claimed that climate change is inducing harm locally.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Our case is, fundamentally, about fairness. Boulder is already experiencing the effects of a rapidly warming climate, and the financial burden of adaptation should not fall solely on local taxpayers,&rdquo; he said.<\/p>\n<p>Arguments before the Supreme Court are expected to occur this fall.<\/p>\n<div style=\"position: relative;\">\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<div class=\"entry-submit-correction inner-content\">\n<div class=\"correction-form\">\n<form style=\"display: none;\">\n<div class=\"sc-name-field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* Name<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"name\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"sc--field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* <\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<label>* Message<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t<textarea name=\"message\" required><\/textarea> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"required-message\" style=\"display: none; padding-bottom: 15px;\">* All fields are required.<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"submit\" value=\"Submit\" onclick=\"event.preventDefault(); firefly_sc();\"> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"firefly-sc-confirm\" style=\"display: none;\">Success!<\/div>\n<\/p><\/form>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> \t\t<script> \t\t\tfunction firefly_sc() { \t\t\t\tif( typeof window.captchaPublicKey==typeof undefined ){ \t\t\t\t\tconsole.error('window.captchaPublicKey is not defined'); \t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\tgrecaptcha.execute( window.captchaPublicKey, { action: 'submit_correction' } ).then( function( token ) { \t\t\t\t\tvar opts={ \t\t\t\t\t\taction:    'firefly_sc_submit', \t\t\t\t\t\tname:      document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"name\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\t:     document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tmessage:   document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"message\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tpost_id:   firefly_post_id, \t\t\t\t\t\tcap_token: token \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tvar inputs=[ 'name', '', 'message' ];  \t\t\t\t\tfor( var i=0; i <inputs.length; i++ ) if( ! ( opts[inputs[i]]=document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"' + inputs[i] + '\"]' ).value ) ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .required-message' ).style.display='block'; \t\t\t\t\t\treturn; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction input[type=\"submit\"]' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).src=firefly_loading_gif_url; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='inline-block';  \t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( 'ma subbing' );  \t\t\t\t\tif( firefly_post_id ) opts['post_id']=firefly_post_id;  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Send the data using post with element id name and name2*\/ \t\t\t\t\tvar posting=jQuery.post( firefly_ajax_url, opts );  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Alerts the results *\/ \t\t\t\t\tposting.done( function( response ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif( response.success ) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( response.data ); \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-confirm' ).style.display='block';  \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdataLayer.push( { 'event': 'submit-correction' } ); \t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> \t     \t\t\t\t\t\t     \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p style=\"border: 1px solid #f5f5f5; padding: 16px;\">Advertise with The Western Journal and reach millions of highly engaged readers, while supporting our work. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/advertise-us\/?wj_source=article\">Advertise Today<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><script>console.log(\"ad slot (BA1)\")<\/script> \t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Supreme Court has agreed to hear Suncor Energy Inc. v. County Commissioners of Boulder County, a case that asks whether federal law preempts state-law claims for damages tied to greenhouse-gas emissions that contribute to climate change. The matter also raises questions about the Court\u2019s jurisdiction under the U.S. Constitution. The Colorado Supreme Court had previously ruled that Boulder\u2019s effort to dismiss the suit rested on the claim that a broad federal interest in interstate pollution, climate policy, and energy policy preempts the state claims.<\/p>\n<p>Oil and gas companies petitioned the Court in August, arguing that allowing numerous local governments to sue in state courts could determine national energy policy and would stretch state-law relief to injuries caused by emissions beyond a state\u2019s borders. The Trump administration reportedly supported the companies, saying the Colorado ruling could enable widespread lawsuits across the country.<\/p>\n<p>Boulder\u2019s lawyers counter that the case belongs in state courts and that there is no constitutional bar to states addressing in-state harms caused by out-of-state conduct. Boulder official Jonathan Koehn stressed that climate change is already harming the city and that local taxpayers shouldn\u2019t bear the full cost of adaptation.<\/p>\n<p>Oral arguments are expected in the fall, and the outcome could influence a wave of similar lawsuits nationwide<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2577264,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Michael-Featured-Image-768.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[13784,75321,75323,75322,70735],"class_list":["post-2577263","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-climate-change","tag-climate-litigation-2","tag-environmental-law-2","tag-oil-companies-2","tag-supreme-court-2"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Michael-Featured-Image-768.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2577263","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2577263"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2577263\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2577267,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2577263\/revisions\/2577267"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2577264"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2577263"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2577263"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2577263"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}