Judge rules against oil companies to keep climate liability case in Rhode Island

Getty Images A federal judge ruled against multiple oil and gas companies Monday, deciding that Rhode Island’s novel climate liability case can be tried in the state. The ruling will allow Rhode Island prosecutors to continue to bring charges against 21 oil and gas producers including Chevron, Shell and BP as the state tries to get the companies to help pay for damages caused by climate change. In his ruling, Judge William Smith of the U.S. District Court For the District of Rhode Island remanded the case to state court. "This is, needless to say, an important suit for both sides. The question presently before the Court is where in our federal system it will be decided," the judge wrote. "Because there is no federal jurisdiction under the various statutes and doctrines adverted to by Defendants, the Court grants the state’s motion to remand." In his ruling Monday, the judge made clear his understanding of the links with climate change in the prosecution’s case, saying, "Climate change is expensive, and the State wants help paying for it." The judge also noted that the companies "have extracted, advertised, and sold a substantial percentage of the fossil fuels burned globally since […]

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