U.S. Supreme Court declines to revive landmark climate suit brought by young Oregonians
'The fight is far from over,' youths' attorney says
By Alex Baumhardt, Oregon Capital Chronicle
WASHINGTON (KTVZ) -- The nation’s highest court declined Monday to hear a petition that would have revived a landmark climate change lawsuit against the federal government, led by young Oregonians and their peers from across the country.
The U.S. Supreme Court’s denial ends 21 youths’ decade-long fight for a trial where they could hold the U.S. government accountable for accelerating global climate change through lawmakers’ policies and fossil fuel subsidies. Despite the setback, it has spurred dozens more cases like it in individual states and around the world.
The nine members of the U.S. Supreme Court denied Monday a petition to throw out a lower court’s decision to dismiss the case Juliana v. United States. The Supreme Court justices dismissed the petition without prejudice, meaning the plaintiffs could attempt to bring it back one day.
Juliana v. United States was first filed in U.S. District Court in Eugene in 2015. Eleven Oregon youths and 10 of their peers from Alaska, Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Hawaii, Louisiana, New York, Pennsylvania and Washington, who were between 8 and 18 years old at the time the suit was filed, are listed as plaintiffs.
Among them is Miko Vergun of Beaverton, who said in a news release that she was proud of the impact the case has had on more than 60 similar lawsuits filed against other states and nations.
“For almost 10 years, we’ve stood up for the rights of present and future generations, demanding a world where we can not only survive, but thrive,” Vergun said. “We’ve faced extreme resistance by the federal government, yet we’ve never wavered in our resolve.”
Vergun, now 22, has been involved in climate activism since she was in seventh grade, according to Our Children’s Trust. She was born in the Marshall Islands, a Pacific island nation, and attributed her activism to making sure that land stays above sea level.
In the U.S., the Juliana case most recently inspired Held v. State of Montana and Navahine v. Hawaii Department of Transportation, both of which led to 2024 decisions affirming the youth plaintiffs’ state constitutional rights to a clean, healthful and life-sustaining environment.
Since 2015, fossil fuel companies, the U.S. Department of Justice, former President Joe Biden, current President Donald Trump and Republican states attorneys general have filed court documents to dismiss the case and to keep it from going to trial.
Most recently, in May, three Trump-appointed judges on the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco sided with the U.S. Department of Justice in ordering the case be dismissed. In June, Julia Olson, attorney for the youth behind the case, filed a request for a rehearing with the Ninth Circuit.
Oregon’s U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden, a Democrat, filed a “friend of the court brief,” urging the court to grant it. It was signed by 39 other congressional Democrats, including Oregon Sen. Jeff Merkley, state Rep. Val Hoyle, representing Oregon’s 4th Congressional District and former state Rep. Earl Blumenauer, who represented Oregon’s 3rd Congressional District.
“The Supreme Court’s decision today is not the end of the road and the impact of Juliana cannot be measured by the finality of this case alone,” Olson said in a news release.
Olson said the trust would continue supporting other cases worldwide, and that she would see the U.S. government back in court one day soon. The Supreme Court did not address the merits of the case, and Our Children’s Trust noted in its news release that the court hears less than 2% of the cases it’s brought each year.
“This fight is far from over,” Olson said. “This is a call to all young people who want to stand up to those in the executive office of the president who would silence you and threaten your health and safety — join us in protecting your constitutional rights.”
