SC AG praises dismissal of Lawsuit against Fossil-Fuel Producers

South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson announced Thursday, June 28, that a 15-state coalition, including South Carolina and led by Indiana, has prevailed in its support of a motion to dismiss a federal lawsuit filed by the cities of San Francisco and Oakland against various energy and manufacturing companies. The cities of San Francisco and Oakland, in the name of the State of California, had claimed that five fossil-fuel-producing corporations were violating “common law” because they contributed to global warming, which, the plaintiffs said, constitutes a “public nuisance.” The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California dismissed the lawsuit. It cited U.S. Supreme Court precedent finding that the Clean Air Act and the Environmental Protection Agency’s corresponding authority to set emission standards have displaced federal common law nuisance claims pertaining to emissions. The district court also cited the separation of powers doctrine, stating that courts should exercise restraint in matters best left to other branches of government. “We joined this fight because we could not let two California cities use the court system to set energy policy for the whole country and bypass our elected representatives in Congress. This lawsuit would have been a disaster for South Carolina cities and job creators because they could have been the targets of future lawsuits simply because they have vehicle fleets or build roads. The court ruling affirms what should be obvious, that San Francisco and Oakland cannot put a damper on economic activity that happens outside of California,” Attorney General Wilson said. Indiana was joined in its amicus brief by Alabama, Arkansas, Colorado, Georgia, Kansas, Louisiana, Nebraska, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Texas, Utah, West Virginia, Wisconsin and Wyoming. Read more at http://www.scag.gov/archives/35969#ixzz5JoS9VIdU.