The Supreme Court just agreed to take up one of the most consequential energy decisions in years, with billion-dollar stakes. In Boulder County v. Suncor Energy, the Court will decide whether state and local governments can sue oil and gas companies in state court to pay for the alleged damages of climate change. The industry's defense is clear: these claims are inherently federal and have no business in a state-level venue. The Court's decision will either open the floodgates for a wave of piecemeal state-court litigation or shut the door on these claims for good.
For those of us in Louisiana, Boulder County arrives soon after oral arguments in Chevron v. Plaquemines Parish. That case tackled similar jurisdictional questions involving over 40 coastal land-loss suits — litigation that has already produced a $750 million judgment in a single case. Ultimately, both Boulder County and Plaquemines boil down to the same question: Does the energy industry get one set of federal rules, or does it have to fight a fifty-front war over decades of prior conduct?
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