Ruling Says New York Cannot Sue Companies Over Climate Change

摘要

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit has unanimously ruled that New York City's climate change lawsuit against a group of energy producers must be dismissed. The decision affirmed a federal district court decision, holding that municipalities cannot "utilize state tort law to hold multinational oil companies liable for the damages caused by global greenhouse gas emissions." In City of New York v. Chevron Corp. et al., the court nixed the city's attempt to regulate and recover damages from Chevron, ConocoPhillips, ExxonMobil Corp. and Royal Dutch Shell PLC for their "admittedly legal commercial conduct in producing and selling fossil fuels around the world," and noted that "every single person who uses gas and electricity contributes to global warming."