Native Village of Kivalina v. ExxonMobil Corporation, et al.

Case Updates

The Ninth Circuit held that federal law displaces federal common law claims for damages for alleged climate change public nuisance.

NCLC urged the Ninth Circuit to uphold a federal judge's dismissal of a lawsuit asking the court to regulate greenhouse gas emissions under federal public nuisance common law. In this case, residents of Kivalina, Alaska sued 24 oil and energy utility companies, claiming that the companies contributed to global warming that has allegedly eroded the town's coastline. A federal district judge dismissed the lawsuit on the grounds that regulating greenhouse gas emissions is a “political as opposed to legal” issue which should be resolved by Congress and the Administration, not by the courts. In its brief, NCLC argued that the case is non-justiciable as the plaintiffs lack standing and are seeking review of a political issue. NCLC warned that upholding the case will create sweeping new federal common law that holds American businesses liable for global climate change.