District Court Allows Katrina Victims to Pursue Climate Change Lawsuit

In Comer v. Murphy Oil USA, residents along the Gulf Coast filed suit against numerous energy companies claiming defendants' business activities contributed to global warming that contributed to the destruction of their properties during Hurricane Katrina. J. Dennis rules that plaintiffs have standing to assert their public and private nuisance, trespass, and negligence claims, and that none of these claims presents nonjusticiable political questions. But plaintiffs' unjust enrichment, fraudulent misrepresentation, and civil conspiracy claims must be dismissed for prudential standing reasons.

-Morgan Gilhuly and Chris Jensen