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Connecticut v. Exxon Mobil Corp.

The Second Circuit affirmed a district court order remanding to state court a climate liability lawsuit against an oil and gas company. The state of Connecticut initially sued the company in state court, alleging it engaged in a decades-long campaign of knowingly misleading and deceiving Connecticut...

Held v. Montana

A state court held unconstitutional a provision of the Montana Environmental Policy Act that prohibited state agencies from considering the impacts of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions on climate change in environmental reviews. A group of youths challenged the prohibition, arguing it was causing or co...

Making Net Zero Matter

This abstract is adapted from Albert C. Lin, Making Net Zero Matter, 79 Wash. & Lee L. Rev. 679 (2022), and used with permission.

The Dangers of Underscoping Risk

In 4°C, Ruhl and Craig effectively argue that governance measures, particularly adaptation planning, will fall short if institutions fail to embrace the real possibility that the planet will blow well past 2° Celsius (°C) above pre-industrial temperatures. Further, they argue that 4°C is a better target for adaptation planning because this metric better captures the future risk the nation faces. Ruhl and Craig are keenly aware that serious talk of a possible 4°C future will almost certainly trigger accusations of “doomism” from various critics.

Anticipating and Preparing for Climate Change

In 4°C, Ruhl and Craig acknowledge that the Earth’s climate is changing at an increasingly rapid rate, outside the range to which society has adapted in the past. Realistically, achieving the goal set in the 2015 Paris Agreement of limiting global warming to 1.5°C will be almost unattainable without drastic actions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

4°C

Accelerating ice loss and expanding wildfire zones are potential markers of what are known as tipping points—thresholds along a nonlinear pattern of system change that accelerate the pace of change. Scientists are concerned that our global climate system is dangerously close to passing these points. This trend has significant implications for governance and law. Climate change disruptions will extend beyond biophysical systems to social systems, including systems of governance.

Charleston, City of v. Brabham Oil Co.

A district court granted the city of Charleston's motion to remand to state court its lawsuit against fossil fuel companies for allegedly contributing to climate change by producing and selling fossil fuel products while deceiving consumers and the public about the dangers associated with them. The ...

Judicial Remedies for Climate Disruption

This Article, adapted from the Climate Science and Law for Judges Curriculum, examines the status and viability of judicial remedies in climate change litigation. It focuses on climate cases that are seeking science-based remedies specifically related to climate mitigation (actions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions or draw down atmospheric carbon) and climate-change adaptation (actions to reduce the negative impacts of climate disruption on human and natural communities).