Ninth Circuit Shuts Down Climate Change Lawsuit
A divided panel of the court found that 21 young plaintiffs failed to establish standing to sue the federal government for failing to address climate change and provide a livable climate.
January 17, 2020 at 01:39 PM
3 minute read
In a divided panel decision, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit has found that 21 young people who sued the federal government claiming that it has failed to address climate change do not have standing to pursue their case in federal court.
"We do not dispute that the broad judicial relief the plaintiffs seek could well goad the political branches into action," wrote Judge Andrew Hurwitz of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in an opinion joined by Judge Mary Murguia. "We reluctantly conclude, however, that the plaintiffs' case must be made to the political branches or to the electorate at large, the latter of which can change the composition of the political branches through the ballot box."
Although panel majority found that U.S. District Judge Ann Aiken of the District of Oregon had correctly found that the plaintiffs adequately alleged concrete harms from climate change and causation that federal policies had been a "substantial factor" to those harms, the court held that it was beyond the scope of an Article III court to order, design and implement the plaintiffs plans to address it.
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