Description: Lawsuit seeking to hold Exxon Mobil Corporation liable for violation of the Connecticut Unfair Trade Practices Act in connection with alleged deceptive acts to create uncertainty about climate science.
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Connecticut v. Exxon Mobil Corp.
Case Documents:
Filing Date Type File Action Taken Summary 06/25/2021 Opposition Download Response filed by Connecticut in opposition to the motion for a stay of the remand order pending appeal. 06/18/2021 Motion Download Motion for a stay of the remand order pending appeal filed by Exxon Mobil Corporation. -
Connecticut v. Exxon Mobil Corporation
Case Documents:
Filing Date Type File Action Taken Summary 06/11/2021 Order Motion to stay execution of remand order granted in part and denied in part. The district court granted a temporary stay of the remand order pending the Second Circuit’s decision on Exxon’s motion to stay, which Exxon filed on June 18. The district court said it did not view Exxon’s arguments in support of its motion to stay execution of the remand order “as showing a strong likelihood of success on the merits, or even a likelihood of success with the balance of the equities in the defendants [sic] favor.” 06/08/2021 Motion Download Motion filed by Exxon to stay execution of remand order pending appeal. 06/08/2021 Notice of Appeal Download Notice of appeal filed. 06/02/2021 Ruling Download Motion to remand granted. Connecticut Federal Court Granted State’s Motion to Remand Unfair Trade Practices Lawsuit Against Exxon. The federal district court for the District of Connecticut granted the State of Connecticut’s motion to remand its lawsuit against Exxon Mobil Corporation (Exxon) in which the State asserts claims under the Connecticut Unfair Trade Practices Act (CUTPA) arising from Exxon’s alleged false or misleading statements about connections between its products and climate change, as well as alleged interference with the marketplace for renewable energy and alleged “greenwashing.” Citing the well-pleaded complaint rule, the court characterized Connecticut’s claims as alleging that Exxon “lied to Connecticut consumers and that these lies affected the behavior of those consumers”; the court said that “[t]he fact that the alleged lies were about the impacts of fossil fuels on the Earth’s climate does not empower the court to rewrite the Complaint and substitute other claims” such as the common law nuisance and trespass claims asserted against fossil fuel companies in other cases. The court then concluded that none of the exceptions to the well-pleaded complaint rule applied. First, the court found that Exxon failed to show that federal common law justified removal, even if it might provide a defense. Second, the court concluded that CUTPA claims did not “necessarily raise” federal issues, as would be required for the Grable exception to the well-pleaded complaint rule. In addition, the court found that neither the federal officer removal statute, the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act, federal enclave jurisdiction, nor diversity jurisdiction provided grounds for removal. The court denied, however, Connecticut’s motion for costs and fees, noting that several issues raised by Exxon were novel in the Second Circuit and that many relevant portions of district court rulings in other circuits had not been subject to appellate review until the Supreme Court’s recent decision in the Baltimore case. 12/02/2020 Motion Download Motion to remand and memorandum of law in support of motion filed by Connecticut. 11/13/2020 Motion to Dismiss Download Motion to dismiss for lack of personal jurisdiction filed by Exxon Mobil Corporation. -
State v. Exxon Mobil Corp.
Case Documents:
Filing Date Type File Action Taken Summary 09/14/2020 Complaint Download Complaint filed. Connecticut Filed Lawsuit Alleging Exxon Engaged in “Campaign of Deception” Regarding Climate Change. Connecticut filed a lawsuit against Exxon Mobil Corporation in Connecticut Superior Court alleging that Exxon “misled and deceived Connecticut consumers about the negative effects of its business practices on the climate.” Connecticut alleged that Exxon executives and other agents knew as early as the 1950s that fossil fuel combustion contributed to global warming and that when Exxon had the opportunity in the 1980s “to responsibly contribute to public understanding of climate change and its potentially catastrophic consequences,” Exxon instead “began a systematic campaign of deception” to undermine climate science and maximize its profits. The complaint listed “myriad negative consequences in Connecticut” to which the State alleged the “campaign of deception” contributed, including sea level rise, flooding, drought, increases in extreme temperatures and severe storms, decreases in air quality, contamination of drinking water, increases in spread of diseases, and severe economic consequences. The State asserted eight counts under the Connecticut Unfair Trade Practices Act and sought injunctive and equitable relief; civil penalties; restitution for State expenditures attributable to Exxon to respond to the effects of climate change; disgorgement of revenues, profits, and gains; disclosure of research and studies on climate change; and funding of a corrective education campaign.