The first case the US Supreme Court will hear this fall term is a blockbuster climate lawsuit — one of dozens brought by state and local governments that argue oil companies deceived the public about the dangers of burning fossil fuels and should be held accountable for climate damages.
On October 5, ExxonMobil and Suncor will argue alongside the Trump administration that the lawsuit brought by Boulder, Colo., and others like it, are preempted by federal law, and, as a result, should be dismissed before trial. Journalists can help the public understand what these cases are about, the arguments coming before the court, and the stakes of this showdown for communities facing increasingly damaging and expensive extreme weather events across the country.
Covering Climate Now and Point Source News hosted a special conversation digging into questions the court will try to resolve and the various angles reporters can explore in their coverage of this case — the role of oil industry money, the broader attacks on climate accountability, the potential implications for climate litigation nationally, and climate impacts in Colorado.
Panelists
- Alejandro Camacho, Professor of Law, UCLA School of Law
- Lesley Clark, Reporter, POLITICO
- Ishan Thakore, Climate and Environment Reporter, Colorado Public Radio
Emily Sanders of Point Source News, a new reporting project covering climate accountability (formerly ExxonKnews), moderated.
Resources From the Conversation
- US Supreme Court docket for Suncor Energy (U.S.A.) Inc., et al., Petitioners v. County Commissioners of Boulder County, et al.
Reporting & Commentary
- “Phillips 66 and ConocoPhillips Warned Justice Alito His Oil Investments Face Material Risk From Climate Lawsuits For Years; Their Trade Association, Suncor and Exxon Briefed Him on How to Eliminate that Risk” (Consumer Watchdog, September 17, 2026)
- “The Colorado ranchers taking on Big Oil” (Emily Sanders, Point Source News, September 16, 2026)
- “‘They’re pulling out all the stops’: Big Oil’s all-encompassing attacks on climate lawsuits” (Emily Sanders, Point Source News, September 16, 2026)
- “The Polluter-Pays Principle and Its Enemies: Corporate Fraud, Weaponizing Preemption, and the Survival of Climate Accountability” (Alejandro E. Camacho, Robert L. Glicksman; The University of Chicago Law Review; September 12, 2026)
- “25 groups urging Supreme Court to kill climate case have ties to oil companies, report says” (Lesley Clark, E&E News, August 17, 2026)
- “Alito’s ‘recusal is not required’ in climate case, Supreme Court spokesperson says” (Lesley Clark, E&E News, May 15, 2026)
- “Ex-DoD officials join climate litigation fray” (Lesley Clark, Climatewire, April 25, 2022)
- “Suncor Helped Lead Climate Denial Group Spreading ‘Uncertainties’” (Geoff Dembicki, DeSmog, September 21, 2026)
- “Exxon: The Road Not Taken” (Inside Climate News, 2015)
Inspired by the Conversation
- “Burned Cattle, Drought, Smoke-Choked Pastures—and the SCOTUS Case to Make Exxon and Suncor Pay” (Rachel Santarsiero, Mother Jones, October 2, 2026)
- “The surprising allies backing Boulder’s climate case before the Supreme Court” (Kate Yoder, Grist, October 1, 2026)
- “Boulder’s climate case gets its most consequential audience yet: The Supreme Court” (Ishan Thakore, Colorado Public Radio, October 2, 2026)
- “Boulder v Suncor at the US Supreme Court: What’s at stake?” (Kimberly Henrickson, The Wave, October 1, 2026)
- “Three things to know about the upcoming Supreme Court climate case” (Emily Sanders, Point Source News, September 30, 2026)
All CCNow live conversations are recorded and published on our YouTube channel.