Oil giants confront initial litigation over alleged contribution to 'environmental extinction'
Scorching Seattle: A Daughter's Lawsuit Against Big Oil
In the sweltering summer of 2021, Seattle experienced a heatwave with temperatures soaring above 42 degrees Celsius (108-degrees Fahrenheit). Tragically, on that unforgettable day, Juliana Leon was found unconscious in her car and succumbed to hyperthermia shortly after. Now, her daughter, Misti Leon, is taking a groundbreaking legal action against seven major oil and gas companies, accusing them of escalating the extreme heat that led to her mother's untimely demise.
Misti Leon's lawsuit, filed in a Washington State court, targets ExxonMobil, Chevron, Shell, BP, ConocoPhillips, Olympic Pipeline, and Phillips 66 for wrongful death. The complaint alleges that these companies, aware of the damaging effects of their fossil fuel products on the Earth's atmosphere for decades, willfully fostered a "fossil fuel-dependent economy" that would subsequently result in "more frequent and destructive weather disasters, and foreseeable loss of human life."
The case, if successful, may well mark a watershed moment in climate litigation, remarked Maria Antonia Tigre, director of Global Climate Litigation at the New York City-based Sabin Center for Climate Change Law. While instances of awarded damages in climate litigation are few and far between, a victory for Leon could see individuals seeking compensatory and even punitive damages from the fossil fuel titans for their role in climate change.
Beyond securing damages, Misti Leon aims to have the defendants finance a public education campaign to dispel "decades of misinformation" that she alleges has fuelled "consumer confusion" surrounding the connection between burning fossil fuels and planetary heating. At the time of writing, Chevron, BP, Shell, and ConocoPhillips have yet to respond to requests for comment on the case.
The Effects of Heatwaves on Our Bodies and Minds
As heatwaves become more frequent and severe, it is crucial to understand their impact on our bodies and minds. In the 2021 Pacific Northwest Heat Dome event, around 850 deaths were reported, with the elderly and those with pre-existing health conditions most at risk. Heat is dubbed a "silent killer" by the United Nations, causing approximately 489,000 annual deaths between 2000-2019.
Industry Goliaths Fight Back
The Chevron Corporation, one of the world's largest oil and gas producers, has rejected the claims made in the lawsuit. The corporation sees the case as an attempt to exploit a personal tragedy for political ends, stating that the court should dismiss this "far-fetched claim" alongside other climate-related lawsuits.
However, Tigre believes the case could establish a novel but plausible basis for liability, as it is based on tort law rather than national statutes, such as emission regulations that have formed the foundation for most climate litigation cases to date. Tort law claims seek damages for individuals impacted by climate change, much like successful cases against big tobacco and asbestos companies in the past.
Big Oil companies are currently facing a barrage of lawsuits from dozens of state and local governments due to damages related to climate change. Leon's lawsuit marks a new front in this legal battle, one that focuses on the individual victims of climate change.
Precedents from other countries may shed some light on Leon's claim. For example, the Urgenda case in the Netherlands, which employed the tort law principle of "hazardous negligence" to argue that government inaction on climate change constituted a breach of its duty of care towards its citizens, could be of relevance. A case in Germany involving a Peruvian farmer suing energy giant RWE for its contribution to the melting of glaciers and the flood risk to his home also presents a concerning parallel.
The Role of Attribution Science in the Case
The science of weather attribution, which estimates the likelihood of climate change enhancing extreme weather events such as wildfires, floods, or heatwaves, will be crucial in Misti Leon's case. Rapid analysis following the 2021 Pacific Northwest Heat Dome event indicated that the record-breaking temperatures, which persisted for three days, would have been virtually impossible without human-induced climate change. The occurrence of such extreme heat events would instead be expected about every 5-10 years if global temperatures rise by 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 Fahrenheit) by the early 2040s.
Convincing the court of the companies' specific contributions to global emissions may, however, prove challenging. As noted by Rebekkah Markey-Towler of the Melbourne Climate Futures think tank, even if it can be proven that climate change caused an event, determining the precise contribution of each company to the total emissions is a daunting and complex task.
Bracing for a New Wave of Litigation
Despite these challenges, health arguments are becoming increasingly common in climate litigation, which now numbers nearly 3,000 in the US and around the world, according to the Sabin Center for Climate Change Law's Climate Change Litigation Database. If successful, Misti Leon's lawsuit could establish a precedent directly connecting the activities of fossil fuel companies to harm suffered by individuals. This could pave the way for a wave of similar lawsuits and evolving legal theories such as "climate homicide" or "corporate manslaughter," which seek a criminal as opposed to a civil conviction.
Edited by: Jennifer Collins
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- The world is witnessing an increase in both the frequency and severity of heatwaves, a trend seen in the scorching temperatures of Seattle in 2021.
- Misti Leon's lawsuit against major oil and gas companies, including ExxonMobil, Chevron, Shell, BP, ConocoPhillips, Olympic Pipeline, and Phillips 66, alleges that their actions to perpetuate a fossil fuel-dependent economy have led to the escalation of extreme weather disasters, like heatwaves, causing "foreseeable loss of human life."
- The lawsuit, if successful, could redefine the global climate litigation landscape, paving the way for individuals to seek compensatory and punitive damages from fossil fuel companies for their role in climate change.
- In addition to securing damages, Misti Leon aims to use the court's decision to finance a public education campaign addressing decades of misinformation surrounding the connection between burning fossil fuels and planetary heating.
- Beyond personal tragedies, the fossil fuel industry is grappling with a barrage of lawsuits from governments and individuals alike for damages related to climate change, with Misti Leon's lawsuit marking a new front in this legal battle.
- The science of weather attribution will play a critical role in determining the impact of human-induced climate change on extreme weather events, such as the 2021 Pacific Northwest Heat Dome, and the specific contributions of individual companies to those emissions.
- As climate change continues to impact the globe, the legal landscape may see a surge in health-focused arguments in climate litigation, with cases like Misti Leon's potentially opening the door for new legal theories, such as "climate homicide" or "corporate manslaughter."
