Native Village of Kivalina v. ExxonMobil Corp.

A federal court granted a motion to dismiss in a lawsuit brought against 24 oil, energy, and utility companies by Inupiat Eskimos from Kivalina, Alaska. In dismissing the case for lack of subject matter jurisdiction, the court held that the question of how best to address climate change was a political question not appropriate for a federal trial court to decide. The court also held that the plaintiffs could not demonstrate that the companies had caused them injury. The lawsuit alleged that as a result of climate change, the Arctic sea ice that protects the Kivalina coast from storms had been diminished and that resulting erosion would require relocation of the residents at a cost of between $95 and $400 million.