"Boulder court denies dismissal in landmark climate accountability case," 24 June 2024

...Boulder County and the City of Boulder successfully defeated motions to dismiss from ExxonMobil Corporation and several Suncor entities in their landmark climate accountability lawsuit... The thorough ruling from the Boulder district court rejected nearly all of the defendants’ legal objections to the suit, and is an important step forward for these and other communities’ ability to obtain redress for the climate harms they are suffering and will continue to suffer.

It has already been a long road for the plaintiffs: the County and City of Boulder filed their case in 2018. For nearly 5 years, they successfully resisted the defendants’ effort to remove the case to federal court, an effort that took them all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court. Last Friday’s ruling marked a significant milestone as the first trial court decision in this case, and notably, it became one of the first climate cases to survive a motion to dismiss... 

The thorough 81-page decision rejected the defendants’ central argument that state law is preempted, and that those harmed should be left without legal recourse...

The decision is also notable for its rejection of defendants’ attempt to recharacterize the case...