The fossil fuel companies said a Supreme Court decision in the case "would provide clarity on whether claims seeking relief for global climate change can proceed before state courts and parties spend significant effort and countless sums in litigation costs and before the energy industry is threatened with damages awards that could run into the billions of dollars." (AP Photo/Mariam Zuhaib)
The companies requested the Supreme Court specifically "review and clarify" whether state law is able to impose the costs of global climate change "on a subset of the world’s energy producers" chosen by plaintiffs in the case.
"Without this Court’s intervention, years might pass before another opportunity to address this pressing question comes along," it added.
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The case dates back nearly four years when, in March 2020, Honolulu officials announced they had sued the companies for damages related to climate change and for deceiving the public about their fossil fuel products' potential impact on global warming.
Honolulu is one of more than a dozen major jurisdictions to file such a lawsuit against oil companies in recent years. Overall, states and cities including California, Rhode Island, New Jersey, Delaware, Minnesota, Chicago, New York City, Washington, D.C., San Francisco and Baltimore, which collectively represent more than 25% of Americans, are pursuing similar litigation.
The skyline in Honolulu on Hawaii's island of Oahu. (Carol M. Highsmith/Buyenlarge/Getty Images)
In a separate statement, Phil Goldberg, special counsel for the National Association of Manufacturers' Accountability Project, called for the Supreme Court to grant the petition.
"Regulating the worldwide production and use of energy — as the plaintiffs’ case attempts to do — is simply beyond the limits of any individual state’s law," Goldberg said. "Trying to apply Hawaii state law to climate change here is directly at odds with these rulings, and the Supreme Court should take this case to make sure that states properly follow its jurisprudence."
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The Honolulu case, along with a large share of the other similar cases filed by state and local governments, is being spearheaded by the California law firm Sher Edling. Sher Edling, which was founded in 2016 with the stated goal of taking on such litigation, states on its website that its climate practice seeks to hold oil companies accountable for their alleged "deception" about climate change.
Vic Sher, a partner at law firm Sher Edling, speaks about the climate litigation he is involved in during a virtual panel in December 2021. (American Museum of Tort Law/YouTube)
Sher Edling's work has received the support of environmentalists and nonprofit groups that argue climate litigation is an important tool for fighting global warming.
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"In light of the growing body of evidence of Big Oil’s climate fraud and deception, and lower courts’ continued rejection of their efforts to escape trial, it’s no surprise that fossil fuel companies are once again attempting to escape accountability," Alyssa Johl, vice president of legal and general counsel at the Center for Climate Integrity, told Fox News Digital.
"Communities across the country deserve their day in court to hold Big Oil accountable for their climate lies and the damages they’ve caused."
Sher Edling didn't respond to a request for comment.
Thomas Catenacci is a politics writer for Fox News Digital.
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