The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday rejected an appeal by Sunoco and several other major oil companies to dismiss a lawsuit filed by Honolulu, which accuses the corporations of misleading the public for decades about the environmental risks of burning fossil fuels.
The oil companies, which include Exxon Mobil, BP, Shell, ConocoPhillips, BHP Group, Marathon Petroleum, and Chevron, sought to overturn a decision by Hawaii’s Supreme Court that allowed the lawsuit, filed under state law, to proceed. The lawsuit was initially brought forward in 2020 by the city and county of Honolulu, along with the Honolulu Board of Water Supply.
Lawsuit Claims and Damages
Honolulu’s lawsuit alleges that the oil companies knowingly made deceptive statements regarding the environmental impact of their fossil fuel products, contributing to damages caused by human-induced climate change. Among the cited damages are heat waves stressing the city’s electrical grid and the necessity to retrofit a wastewater treatment facility to counter rising sea levels, an expense estimated at hundreds of millions of dollars.
The plaintiffs argue that the defendants have been aware for over 50 years of the significant adverse effects of greenhouse gas emissions, including rising sea levels and extreme weather events. Rather than addressing these consequences, the lawsuit claims the companies promoted false information, undermined public awareness of climate risks, and intensified the production and use of fossil fuels.
Ben Sullivan, an official from Honolulu’s Office of Climate Change, Sustainability, and Resiliency, welcomed the Supreme Court’s decision, stating, “This landmark decision upholds our right to enforce Hawaii laws in Hawaii courts, ensuring the protection of Hawaii taxpayers and communities from the immense costs and consequences of the climate crisis caused by the defendants’ misconduct.”
Broader Legal Context
Honolulu’s case is part of a broader wave of lawsuits filed by U.S. jurisdictions seeking financial compensation from fossil fuel companies for their role in climate change. The lawsuit highlights projected consequences for Honolulu, including significant sea level rise, coastal flooding, beach erosion, and intensified extreme weather events.
The oil companies have argued that such claims fall under federal jurisdiction, as regulating interstate emissions or commerce is the purview of the federal government. However, Hawaii Circuit Court Judge Jeffrey Crabtree rejected this argument, a decision upheld by Hawaii’s Supreme Court in October 2023.
The defendants previously sought to move the case to federal court but were denied by the U.S. Supreme Court in April 2023.