MA Supreme Court Pushes ExxonMobil To Face Attorney General's Lawsuit

BOSTON — On Tuesday, the Massachusetts Supreme Court rejected ExxonMobil's bid to dismiss a lawsuit brought by Attorney General Maura Healey accusing the company of misleading Massachusetts consumers and investors about climate change.

In March, ExxonMobil said it shouldn't have to face the case because state law protects defendants from politically motivated lawsuits that wish to silence their views. But on Tuesday, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court ruled 7-0 that the law "does not apply" to this particular case.

Seven state attorneys general and more than 10 local governments have sued ExxonMobil in claiming that the company hid its knowledge of the dangers of burning fossil fuels. So far, Healey's lawsuit has progressed the furthest.

The lawsuit was first launched by Healey in 2019 after a three-year investigation into the company's actions and response to climate change.

"The first count of the complaint alleged that Exxon Mobil misrepresented or failed to disclose material facts to ExxonMobil investors in Massachusetts related to climate change and
its impact on Exxon Mobil's business," the Supreme Court said Tuesday. "The second count alleged that certain marketing and promotional materials misled Massachusetts consumers as to the climate impact of ExxonMobil's products."

"Finally, the third count alleged that ExxonMobil is misleading Massachusetts consumers through so-called 'greenwashing' campaigns that wrongly imply that ExxonMobile is taking steps to solve climate change and reduce carbon emissions, thereby influencing consumer purchasing decisions," the Supreme Court continued.

The company also lost a bid in March after attempting to file a lawsuit saying that Healey — who is now running for Massachusetts governor — and New York Attorney General Letitia James had political motivations for launching the investigation into their company.

InsideClimate News released documents from the 1970s that indicate ExxonMobil scientists were aware of the dangers of fossil fuels even then. The documents reveal that the company launched an organized public relations campaign to divert the public's attention from the finding that fossil fuels cause global warming.

On Monday, a federal appeals court also rejected a suit brought by Rhode Island in 2018 that included ExxonMobil.

"Seeking relief for the catastrophic harm they supposedly have done (and will do) to its non-federal property and natural resources, Rhode Island — also like other governments elsewhere — sued the Energy Companies in state court," the appeal reads. "But to their disappointment, the district judge thought that none of those grounds could provide a hook on which removal could hang. ... And so he remanded the case to state court."