ELR Citation: 52 ELR 20080
No(s). 21-15313 and 21-15318 (9th Cir. Jul 7, 2022)

The Ninth Circuit affirmed a district court order remanding to state court two climate liability suits against numerous oil and gas companies. The city and county of Honolulu and the county of Maui sued in state court, arguing the companies knew about climate change, understood the harms that energy exploration and extraction inflict on the environment, and hid those harms from the public. The companies removed the suit to federal court, asserting federal officer jurisdiction, federal enclave jurisdiction, and jurisdiction under the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act. The appellate court found the companies failed to show they were "acting under" federal officers, failed to show that activities on federal enclaves directly caused plaintiffs' injuries, and that their activities on the outer continental shelf were too attenuated from plaintiffs' injuries. It declined to extend federal jurisdiction and affirmed the district court's remand order.