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The Climate Litigation Database

Sanders-Reed v. Martinez

Geography
🇺🇸 United States / New Mexico
Year
2011
Document Type
Litigation
Part of
Sanders-Reed v. Martinez

About this case

Filing year
2011
Status
Summary judgment entered for defendants.
Geography
🇺🇸 United States → New Mexico
Docket number
D-101-CV-2011-01514
Court/admin entity
United States → New Mexico District Court (N.M. Dist. Ct.)United States → State Courts
Case category
Public Trust Claims (US)
Principal law
United States → Public Trust Doctrine
At issue
Action seeking declaration that state had obligation to protect atmosphere as public trust and to regulate greenhouse gas emissions.
Topics
,

Documents

Filing Date
Document
Type
Topics 
Beta
07/04/2013
Summary judgment entered for defendants.
The court ruled from the bench on June 26, 2013 that the public trust doctrine did not apply because the New Mexico Environmental Improvement Board had made findings that there was no need to regulate the state’s greenhouse gas emissions because that would have no impact on the issue of global warming or climate change. On July 4,2013, summary judgment was entered in favor of defendants. Plaintiffs filed a notice of appeal.
Decision
07/14/2012
Order issued granting in part and denying in part motion to dismiss.
In May 2011, Our Children’s Trust, an environmental group, filed lawsuits and administrative petitions in several states, including New Mexico, requesting that the environmental agencies in these states adopt rules to reduce statewide greenhouse gas emissions from fossil fuels pursuant to the public trust doctrine. After the lawsuit was filed, New Mexico moved to dismiss. In a brief order, a state court denied the motion, holding that plaintiffs had made a substantive allegation that the state is ignoring the atmosphere with respect to greenhouse gas emissions.
Decision

Summary

Action seeking declaration that state had obligation to protect atmosphere as public trust and to regulate greenhouse gas emissions.

 Topics mentioned most in this case  
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Group
Topics
Policy instrument
Greenhouse gas