Attorney General Todd Rokita is defending Hoosiers against an attempt by Baltimore to use parochial state courts to impose climate change policy in Indiana as well as every other state across the country.
Baltimore sued numerous fossil-fuel companies, claiming the companies’ activities contributed to global climate change and their activities constituted a public nuisance. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit recently ruled to send the case back to state court. This decision is now being challenged by Attorney General Rokita with an amicus brief asking the full court to rehear the case.
“No one state has the right to set policy in another state. By pushing this case back to state court, these federal judges are establishing a dangerous precedent,” Attorney General Rokita said. “This issue affects more than just Maryland—it affects all of us across the country. Hoosiers’ concerns and values are my first priority, and I refuse to allow Maryland’s state court to dictate how we do things here in Indiana.”
Attorney General Rokita also has led multistate coalitions against similar efforts by several U.S. cities to use their own state courts to exclude other states from the climate-change policymaking process. Those cities include Hoboken, in New Jersey, and the cities of San Francisco and Oakland in California.
Attorney General Rokita will continue to fight for Hoosiers by backing the rule of law and preserving legal precedent.
Article provided by the Attorney General’s Office
