Two years after The New York Times ran a feature story on the private attorney representing Puerto Rico municipalities in their climate lawsuit, a federal judge has dismissed the case. [emphasis, links added]
When the case was filed, the outlet wrote that attorney Missy Sims is “the singular force behind a creative legal gambit to make oil and gas companies pay” for the [alleged] effects of climate change.
This “gambit,” which included charging oil companies under anti-racketeering laws for the first time, generated many a headline but ultimately ended the same way as many other cases against the industry: dismissal.
Federal Judge: “Plaintiffs were not diligent.”
The Puerto Rico case was unique in its attempt to utilize the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act — designed to pursue organized crime and mafia activities — against the energy industry.
In recent years, litigation proponents have tested new strategies ranging from RICO to wrongful death claims amidst a rising tide of dismissals from Judges across the country.
But the plaintiffs’ new strategy was plagued by procedural sloppiness, and the case was dismissed by Judge Silvia Carreño-Coll of the U.S. District Court for the District of Puerto Rico.
E&E News reports:
“[Carreño-Coll] sided with the industry, which had argued that a civil RICO claim must be brought within four years of ‘when a plaintiff knew or should have known of his injury.’”
While Carreño-Coll acknowledged the impact of the 2017 hurricane season on the Puerto Rican people, she went on to write:
“…the injury and which entities to sue and on what basis were all readily apparent from the coverage in the popular press, the court cases, and the reports, and plaintiffs were not diligent.” (emphasis added)
Taking things a step further, Judge Carreño-Coll dismissed all the claims made against ExxonMobil, Shell, Chevron, BP, ConocoPhillips, and Motiva with prejudice, meaning the same claims cannot be refiled.
Attorneys for the plaintiffs told the New York Times they plan to appeal the decision.
Total Failure in Puerto Rico Adds to Growing Dismissals
Climate lawsuits have found limited success nationwide, with a particularly poor track record in Puerto Rico.
In May, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico voluntarily withdrew from its own lawsuit, and in April, a judge lambasted the outside counsel of San Juan’s case for “astonishing plagiarism” of the other Puerto Rico municipalities’ case.
Meanwhile, the court’s rejection of the Puerto Rico municipalities’ suit marks the latest rejection of climate litigation following dismissals in South Carolina, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, and Maryland.
Bottom Line: The collapse of the Puerto Rican municipalities’ case is yet another sign that the litigation campaign against American energy companies is on life support.
Plaintiffs and activists continue to search for a viable angle, but courts continue to rebuff the failing pursuit.
Read more at EID Climate
