06-17-2026, 05:47 PM
Figured it's worth piggy-backing on this thread about Maui and Honolulu's lawsuits against oil companies for an update on the State of Hawai'i's recent lawsuit. Ignorance of (and incompetence in) the law is no excuse (especially for those, like some in the DOJ, who spend a lot of time thinking about the Roman Empire).
https://www.staradvertiser.com/2026/06/1...al-ruling/
"U.S. claims ‘misunderstanding,’ requests Hawaii judge to alter her fossil fuels dismissal ruling
The Trump administration has asked a federal judge to reconsider the dismissal of its case against Hawaii for suing private fossil fuel companies, claiming in a new motion that the United States was deprived of a fair opportunity to amend its complaint because it misunderstood a question from the judge.
The United States sued Hawaii in April 2025, seeking to stop the state from filing a planned lawsuit against major oil companies for deceptive marketing practices that contributed to climate change harms. The next day, Hawaii sued various private fossil fuel companies including BP, Chevron, ExxonMobil and Shell, alleging the companies knew the “catastrophic consequences for the planet and its people” of fossil fuel pollution and then “mounted a decades-long campaign of deception to discredit the scientific consensus on climate change;” created doubt in consumers and delayed the energy economy’s transition to a lower-carbon future “while maximizing their own profits.”
The federal government argues that Hawaii’s state lawsuit is an attempt to “regulate emissions” in violation of the Clean Air Act and usurp the federal government’s “exclusive authority over interstate and foreign commerce, greenhouse gas regulation and national energy policy.” Hawaii’s lawsuit maintains that the focus is on deceptive marketing practices.
U.S. District Judge Helen Gillmor dismissed the federal government’s case in April, finding it lacked standing to sue Hawaii because the case was based in hypotheticals and speculation.
...
In a new filing Friday, Hawaii argued Gillmor should leave the decision as it stands.
...
The federal government “argues that its own misunderstanding of one of the Court’s supplemental briefing questions caused it to provide an answer that it now wishes to take back,” Hawaii wrote in its response. “It fails to provide any specific information about how it could rewrite its complaint to avoid a dismiss on standing … It is quite clear that any attempt to revise the complaint would be futile.”
...
“The United States’ deliberate decision not to amend its complaint for almost a year does not constitute clear error on the part of the Court,” Hawaii argued.
...
The United States is expected to respond to Hawaii’s latest briefing by July 2. A federal judge dismissed a near-identical lawsuit the United States filed against Michigan for similar reasons in January." (more at link - paywalled, but whole story is there in the source html...)
https://www.staradvertiser.com/2026/06/1...al-ruling/
"U.S. claims ‘misunderstanding,’ requests Hawaii judge to alter her fossil fuels dismissal ruling
The Trump administration has asked a federal judge to reconsider the dismissal of its case against Hawaii for suing private fossil fuel companies, claiming in a new motion that the United States was deprived of a fair opportunity to amend its complaint because it misunderstood a question from the judge.
The United States sued Hawaii in April 2025, seeking to stop the state from filing a planned lawsuit against major oil companies for deceptive marketing practices that contributed to climate change harms. The next day, Hawaii sued various private fossil fuel companies including BP, Chevron, ExxonMobil and Shell, alleging the companies knew the “catastrophic consequences for the planet and its people” of fossil fuel pollution and then “mounted a decades-long campaign of deception to discredit the scientific consensus on climate change;” created doubt in consumers and delayed the energy economy’s transition to a lower-carbon future “while maximizing their own profits.”
The federal government argues that Hawaii’s state lawsuit is an attempt to “regulate emissions” in violation of the Clean Air Act and usurp the federal government’s “exclusive authority over interstate and foreign commerce, greenhouse gas regulation and national energy policy.” Hawaii’s lawsuit maintains that the focus is on deceptive marketing practices.
U.S. District Judge Helen Gillmor dismissed the federal government’s case in April, finding it lacked standing to sue Hawaii because the case was based in hypotheticals and speculation.
...
In a new filing Friday, Hawaii argued Gillmor should leave the decision as it stands.
...
The federal government “argues that its own misunderstanding of one of the Court’s supplemental briefing questions caused it to provide an answer that it now wishes to take back,” Hawaii wrote in its response. “It fails to provide any specific information about how it could rewrite its complaint to avoid a dismiss on standing … It is quite clear that any attempt to revise the complaint would be futile.”
...
“The United States’ deliberate decision not to amend its complaint for almost a year does not constitute clear error on the part of the Court,” Hawaii argued.
...
The United States is expected to respond to Hawaii’s latest briefing by July 2. A federal judge dismissed a near-identical lawsuit the United States filed against Michigan for similar reasons in January." (more at link - paywalled, but whole story is there in the source html...)