A federal judge this week rejected the Trump administration’s pre-emptive lawsuit from last year to block the state of Hawaii from suing fossil fuel companies over climate impact concerns.
Hawaii Senior U.S. District Judge Helen Gillmor dismissed the administration’s lawsuit with prejudice in a Wednesday ruling.
Federal officials filed the U.S. complaint on April 30, two days after the State of Hawaii indicated they intended to sue several fossil fuel companies. On May 1, the state filed their complaint.
The Clinton-appointed federal judge found that the U.S.’s preemptive filing in this case does not satisfy requirements for “real and not abstract” evidence of harm.
The ruling is based on the time at which the U.S. filed its complaint, which occurred before the state filed its lawsuit.
