Oakland, CA—The Texas Court of Appeals has reversed the trial court’s ruling that Exxon Mobil could compel various California officials, including Oakland City Attorney Barbara J. Parker and San Francisco City Attorney Dennis Herrera, to travel to Texas for depositions and other pre-litigation discovery based on Exxon’s bogus claims that California officials conspired to suppress Exxon’s protected speech.
The Texas Court of Appeals rejected Exxon’s efforts to hale Oakland’s leaders and other California-based municipal officials in to Texas courts, holding that: (1) neither City Attorney Parker nor any other California leader in question targeted the state of Texas in any way; and (2) the fact that defendant Exxon is based in Texas and is a defendant in several global warming lawsuits is not enough to compel California officials, who have absolutely no connection with Texas, to appear in Texas courts.
Exxon’s actions required the Oakland City Attorney, the San Francisco City Attorney, and other California officials to retain legal counsel in Texas to represent them in the Texas courts. Now that the Texas appellate court has reversed the trial court and denied Exxon’s petition, Oakland’s focus can be solely on the merits proceedings in the underlying case, City of Oakland, et al. v. B.P. PLC et al. The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals recently reinstated the lawsuit after the trial court dismissed it. The defendants, Exxon and four other fossil fuel companies, are seeking rehearing. The Texas Appellate decision and the recent Ninth Circuit decision are linked in this release.
In 2017, Oakland City Attorney Parker and San Francisco City Attorney Herrera filed separate lawsuits on behalf of their respective cities against the five largest publicly traded producers of fossil fuels in the world. The lawsuits asked the court to hold the defendants responsible for the costs of sea walls and other infrastructure necessary to protect Oakland and San Francisco from ongoing and future consequences of climate change and sea level rise caused by the companies’ production of massive amounts of fossil fuels. The defendant companies – Chevron, ConocoPhillips, Exxon Mobil, BP and Royal Dutch Shell – knew for decades that fossil fuels drive global warming, and accelerated sea level rise poses a catastrophic risk to human beings and to public and private property. Yet they continued to aggressively produce, market, and sell vast quantities of fossil fuels for a global market, while engaging in an organized campaign to deceive consumers about the dangers of massive fossil fuel production.
Oakland City Attorney Barbara J. Parker issued the following statement:
Make no mistake: Exxon, like the other Big Oil defendants, will stoop low to distract from the real issue: their culpability for the climate change crisis that Oakland, San Francisco, and other California cities and counties face. Indeed, Exxon has proven that it will attempt to haul numerous California officials into Texas state courts, making baseless accusations about conspiracy and alleged violations of corporate constitutional rights. I am relieved that even a self-proclaimed conservative Texas state court could not justify Exxon’s attempt to use the justice system to harass local officials. The appellate court’s dismissal in this matter will allow Oakland, San Francisco, and other California cities and counties to focus all of our resources on the lawsuits we filed against fossil fuel companies to protect and defend our communities, our commerce, and our ecosystems from the devastation of climate change.
