District of Columbia ruling continues string of victories for communities suing Big Oil

In a unanimous decision, a federal appeals court ruled that the District of Columbia’s climate fraud lawsuit against ExxonMobil, Shell, Chevron, and BP can proceed in D.C. Superior Court, where it was originally filed, bringing the nation’s capital one step closer to putting Big Oil companies on trial for their climate deception.

The D.C. Circuit Court’s ruling this week makes it the eighth federal appeals court to reject the fossil fuel industry’s arguments to avoid facing evidence of their climate lies in state and local courts. The U.S. Supreme Court has twice declined to hear oil giants’ appeals on this issue, and is facing yet another pending petition from the oil industry, in a case from Minnesota, underscoring just how fearful fossil fuel companies are of facing accountability.

The Office of the Attorney General for the District of Columbia filed the lawsuit in 2020, arguing that the oil companies have violated D.C.’s consumer protection law by misleading consumers about their fossil fuel products' integral role in causing the climate crisis we’re facing today.

“Today’s decision is a win for District residents and a major step forward in our effort to hold Exxon accountable for their decades-long campaign to deceive the public about the environmental damage caused by fossil fuels,” said D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb after the ruling. “We look forward to continuing our case in Superior Court where it belongs.”