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Taking a Lesson from the Tobacco Ad Ban to Shut Down Fossil Fuel Greenwashing

Union of Concerned Scientists

This month, UN Secretary-General António Guterres called for a ban on advertising by fossil fuel companies, invoking the ban on tobacco ads as a relevant precedent. The treaty, in force as international law for nearly 20 years, now binds 183 parties, protecting more than 90 percent of the world’s people.

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Making Fossil Fuels Pay for Their Damage

Legal Planet

Production and combustion of fossil fuels imposes enormous costs on society, which the industry doesn’t pay for. One option, a tax on carbon dioxide emissions, gets the most attention but seems politically impossible. The closest we’ve ever come to a carbon tax is a limited fee on methane emissions under the new IRA law.

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US States and Communities are Suing the Fossil Fuel Industry: Six Things You Need to Know 

Union of Concerned Scientists

In an important win for climate accountability in the United States, the US Supreme Court decided that lawsuits filed in Colorado, Maryland, California, Hawai’i, and Rhode Island against fossil fuel companies including ExxonMobil, Chevron, Shell, Suncor, and others will remain in state courts.

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Navigating Net Zero Via the Law  

Union of Concerned Scientists

Last year’s UN climate talks, while criticized for certain shortcomings , brought into sharp focus the need for robust legal frameworks to transition from fossil fuels. It also encourages badly needed reforms inside and outside of government and will help create new political coalitions.

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Environmental Law Again Front-and-Center at California Supreme Court

Legal Planet

Monterey County Oil Field (credit: Monterey County Weekly) For the first two decades of this century, and under the able leadership of former Chief Justices Ronald George and Tani Cantil-Sakauye, the California Supreme Court was quite active in interpreting and shaping California environmental law. Well, break’s over.

Law 242
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California Supreme Court Finds County Ordinance Limiting Oil & Gas Development Preempted by State Law

Legal Planet

Last week, the California Supreme Court unanimously ruled that an initiative measure that would have imposed severe restrictions on oil and gas development in Monterey County is preempted by state law and therefore invalid. But the good news is that this goal can still be achieved through other legal and political strategies.

Law 130
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Can International Law Save the Planet from Climate Change?

Union of Concerned Scientists

When diplomacy needs backup, countries turn to resolve their disputes at the ICJ, the United Nations’ principal judicial organ, to set the tone for international law. As an advisory body, the court provides legal opinions on international law questions. What is an advisory opinion?