A local state court in Pennsylvania recently dismissed an array of climate tort claims brought against major fossil fuel companies by a local government--in this case, Bucks County. Among the three dozen or so climate tort...more
Welcome to our fifth issue of Currents 2025. We are covering a multitude of issues in this edition, but we want to pass along an announcement and an event notice first. Again, thank you for reading! Tapping Into Common...more
Even as the Trump administration moves to block state and local climate liability efforts, states and municipalities continue to advance lawsuits seeking to hold fossil fuel companies liable for harms associated with climate...more
On May 12, 2025, in a 5-2 decision, the Colorado Supreme Court held that the tort claims brought by local governments in Colorado against major fossil fuel companies concerning damages stemming from climate change could...more
On April 8, 2025, President Trump issued Executive Order 14260, Protecting American Energy From State Overreach. Framed as part of the Administration’s broader strategy of unleashing American energy, the Order directs...more
On April 8, 2025, President Trump issued a series of executive orders directing the federal government to analyze state-level climate policies targeting fossil fuel consumption and environmental regulations. This action...more
Public companies can face significant liability based on past operations. While most industrial companies have long-term experience evaluating potential remediation obligations imposed by laws such as the federal...more
On December 26, 2024, New York Governor Kathy Hochul signed the Climate Change Superfund Act (“CCSA” or the “Act”) into law. The law requires certain fossil fuel producers and refiners with sufficient connections to New York...more
In California's continuing war on businesses, a legislator recently introduced a bill to enact the "Polluters Pay Climate Superfund Act of 2025", AB 1243 (Addis). This bill would establish the a program to be administered by...more
In December 2024, the State of New York enacted the “Climate Change Superfund Act,” which would impose retroactive fines on fossil fuel producers for greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to climate change. (New York was...more
On Monday, the U.S. Supreme Court announced that it will not hear an appeal from certain major oil and gas companies to dismiss a lawsuit by the city of Honolulu seeking to hold the companies responsible for the impacts of...more
Beginning in 2017, an array of state and local governments have pursued tort claims against major fossil fuel producers (e.g., the major oil companies) alleging, inter alia, common law claims of nuisance based upon the...more
In May 2019, National Grid – the utility company that provides natural gas to approximately 1.8 million customers in Brooklyn, Queens, Staten Island and Long Island – announced a moratorium on the processing of applications...more
U.S. to Give Eight Nations Oil Waivers Under Iran Sanctions, Official Says - "The U.S. has agreed to let eight countries - including Japan, India and South Korea - keep buying Iranian oil after it reimposes sanctions on the...more
The Situation: In what may portend the beginning of the end to the latest chapter of U.S. filed state law "global warming" or climate change litigation against industry, a federal court in San Francisco denied a motion to...more
On July 17, 2017, Marin County, San Mateo County, and the City of Imperial Beach filed three lawsuits in California Superior Court against a number of large oil, gas and coal companies. The complaints assert a variety of...more