Howard Erichson was quoted in a Houston Chronicle article about the possibility of legal action against Exxon Mobil as its activities relate to climate change.
Legal experts say the comparisons to a sweeping change reminiscent of cigarette marketing may prove limited. In the tobacco litigation, a corporate whistleblower helped provide evidence that fueled massive class actions. As news reports unearthed documentation of cigarettes manipulated with nicotine spikes, state attorneys general joined the fray, suing to recover medical costs. The companies paid billions of dollars in settlements, and the culture around smoking changed.
In those cases, the parties on each side were clear. In any potential litigation over the role of petroleum in climate change, though, “the victims potentially include all seven billion citizens of earth,” said Howard Erichson, a civil procedure expert at Fordham University. “And the perpetrators potentially include all seven billion humans as well, although obviously not in equal proportions. This makes climate change a less obvious candidate for mass tort litigation than, say, pharmaceutical product liability, air crashes, cigarettes, or even oil spills.”
Investor fraud may prove to be a solid starting point for the climate change case against Big Oil, he added: “To me, the more interesting question is what other sorts of claimants will emerge.”
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