Weird: Maryland Supreme Court Rejects Climate Lawsuit

Usually you can expect a liberal court to rule in favor of liberal stuff, but, I guess like the NJ suit that their superior court killed, the facts were just too tough to rule against

Maryland high court rejects localities’ plea for climate change damages

The Supreme Court of Maryland denied a trio of localities’ attempt to hold multinational oil and gas companies accountable for their role in global climate change.

The court held that Baltimore, Annapolis and Anne Arundel County’s attempt to recover damages violates the Constitution and federal laws, including the Clean Air Act, that preempt state common-law tort claims based on global greenhouse gas emissions. The court further held that state courts are not the appropriate venue for localities to regulate international conduct.

“To hold the defendants responsible for foreign activity would necessarily require them to internalize the costs of climate change, which, in turn, would presumably affect the price and production of fossil fuels abroad,” Maryland Justice Brynja Booth wrote for the majority. “It would also bypass the various diplomatic channels that the United States uses to address this issue, such as the U.N. framework and the Paris agreement.”

The localities sued over two dozen companies, including Chevron, BP and Shell, along with an energy trade association, claiming they misled the public about the dangers associated with fossil fuel production, despite knowing for nearly 50 years of its link to climate change. The companies’ discrediting of scientific evidence amounts to a public and private nuisance, negligence, failure to warn and trespass, according to the localities.

And yet, Baltimore, Annapolis, and Anne Arundel County all continued to use the products of the companies they sued over climate doom and will continue to use them. Again, those companies who were sued should have stopped selling their products to those doing the suing.

“Quite simply, the notion that a local government such as Baltimore, Annapolis or Anne Arundel County may pursue state law nuisance claims against the defendants — seeking injunctive relief to abate injuries arising from global greenhouse effects arising from worldwide conduct — is so far afield from any area of traditional state or local responsibility that it cannot be seriously contemplated,” Booth wrote.

I’m still always surprised that we never hear from the justices or the lawyers of the companies being sued “hey, are you still using fossil fuels? Huh.” I’m not a lawyer, so, maybe that’s not relevant in that process, but, seems rather pertinent information to me.