December 2017
Alleging negligence and seeking potentially hundreds of millions in damages, Santa Cruz area officials filed suit against 29 climate polluters. The complaints were the first to add climate change-fueled wildfires as an additional risk. The complaint also estimates that sea level rise projected by 2030 threatens $742 million in assets and 850 buildings in the county and $152 million in assets and 70 buildings in the city.
- News: Santa Cruz Sentinel • KSBW
- Analysis: California Communities, Big Oil Go to Court Over Future of Climate Lawsuits (2022) • Big Oil Loses Appeals in California Climate Lawsuits (2020) • Big Oil loses again: California climate lawsuits can proceed in state court (2020) • Exxon can’t depose California communities suing them, Texas Court of Appeals rules (2020) • Appeals Court denies Big Oil’s request for rehearing in California climate lawsuits (2020) • Texas Supreme Court Rejects Exxon’s Attempt to Intimidate California Communities Seeking Climate Accountability (2022) • Ninth Circuit Deals Latest Blow to Big Oil, Ruling that California Climate Lawsuits Belong in State Court (2022)
- Read the Complaint: City of Santa Cruz v. Chevron Corp. et al. • County of Santa Cruz v. Chevron Corp. et al.