Last Update: 04/05/2026 at 2:50 PM EST
Maryland Blocks Local Climate Damage Suits
Coverage from Courthouse News Service, Reuters, and others
Articles
7
Latest Article
03/31
Active Days
8
Executive Summary
Maryland's top court dismissed local climate damage suits against oil companies, ruling federal law preempts state claims over global emissions
- The Supreme Court of Maryland dismissed Baltimore, Annapolis and Anne Arundel County suits against oil and gas companies
- The court held the Clean Air Act and federal law preempt state tort claims over global greenhouse gas emissions
- Justice Brynja Booth wrote that state courts cannot regulate international conduct tied to climate change
- The local governments alleged decades of deception about fossil fuel risks and sought damages for local climate harms
- Claims included nuisance, failure to warn, negligence, strict liability and trespass
- Justices Shirley Watts and Peter Killough dissented in part, saying some claims resembled fraud and were not preempted
- The ruling aligns with a similar climate case pending before the US Supreme Court
Quick Facts
- What: Lost lawsuits seeking climate damages from oil firms
- Where: Supreme Court of Maryland
- Why: Federal law was found to preempt state claims
- Who: Baltimore Annapolis and Anne Arundel County
- When: Issued in the 2020s during ongoing litigation
Coverage Timeline: 8 Days
Featured Article
In Maryland, the Supreme Court in 2020s litigation rejected Baltimore-area localities attempts to seek climate damages from multinational oil and gas companies due to Clean Air Act preemption.
Additional Articles
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Maryland's Supreme Court in the 2020s upheld dismissal of climate nuisance lawsuits against Exxon Mobil, BP, and Chevron after finding federal preemption for interstate pollution claims.
Supreme Court of Maryland rejected public nuisance climate claims on federal preemption and Maryland-law grounds, potentially limiting future suits on interstate pollution.
Maryland Supreme Court dismissed Baltimore and two Maryland local government climate lawsuits against oil and gas companies, citing limits on state regulation of greenhouse gas emissions.
Supreme Court of Maryland dismissed Baltimore-area governments' climate tort claims against 26 fossil fuel companies on Clean Air Act and federal preemption grounds.
Maryland Supreme Court dismissed lawsuits by Baltimore, Annapolis, and Anne Arundel County against major oil companies over alleged concealed climate impacts.
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Maryland Supreme Court dismissed Baltimore, Annapolis, and Anne Arundel County climate-emissions lawsuits against energy companies after federal-law jurisdiction limits were applied.