The Supreme Court Permits Youth Activists' Climate Change Lawsuit Against the U.S. Government
After a group of young Americans filed a lawsuit that would force the U.S. Government to take action against climate change, the Trump Administration filed a request for the Supreme Court to halt the lawsuit before it reached trial. But according to the Washington Post, the Supreme Court moved in favor of the activists on Friday night, refusing to block the legal process.
Per the WaPo's report, the lawsuit was filed in 2015 by 21 "young people" who argue that their Constitutional right to a clean environment has been violated by the current administration's failure to address climate change.
The suit-which sits before a judge in Oregon-was temporarily delayed while the Supreme Court evaluated the U.S. Government's request. It will now proceed, with the next logical step being the Trump Administration's appeal of the decision (which would send the suit to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit).
Per the court's three-page-order, the U.S. Government argued that the "suit is based on an assortment of unprecedented legal theories, such as a substantive due process right to certain climate conditions, and an equal protection right to live in the same climate as enjoyed by prior generations."
“We’ve been confident throughout this case that we would get to trial, and I believe we will get to trial,” Julia Olson, the attorney for the youth activists told the Washington Post on the night of the Supreme Court's decision. “We have overcome everything the government has thrown at us. It is not luck. It is the strength of the case and the strength of the evidence and the strength of the legal arguments we are making.” Olson is also the executive director of Our Children's Trust, a youth empowerment group that has been actively protesting outside of the U.S. Supreme Court this past week.
According to Olson, the youth activists plan to file a request to Oregon's district court for a a highly anticipated hearing soon.
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