"Big Oil Loses Appeal, Climate Suits Go to California Courts," 28 May 2020

The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals…ruled state courts are the proper forum for lawsuits alleging producers promoted petroleum as environmentally responsible when they knew it was contributing to drought, wildfires, and sea level rise associated with global warming. The lawsuits claim Chevron, Exxon Mobil, ConocoPhillips, BP, Royal Dutch Shell and other companies created a public nuisance and should pay for damage from climate change.

…San Francisco City Attorney Dennis Herrera said…”We will continue to hold these companies accountable for their decades-long campaign of public deception about climate change and its consequences.”

...An appeals court in Virginia ruled that a similar case brought by Baltimore belonged in Maryland courts and lower federal courts in other cities have issued similar decisions.

...Chevron…said the cases involve issues of national law and policy and do not belong in state courts. “In whichever forum the cases are ultimately determined, these factually and legally unsupported claims do nothing to sensibly address the significant national economic, legal and policy issues presented by climate change,” said Sean Comey, a Chevron spokesman.