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Dear friends,
On Friday, five months after they began, settlement talks between the 21 Juliana v. U.S. youth plaintiffs and attorneys with the U.S. Department of Justice ended without resolution.
In May, U.S. District Court Judge Ann Aiken ordered attorneys for both the 21 Juliana plaintiffs and for the federal government to convene for a settlement conference with Magistrate Judge Thomas M. Coffin. However, despite good faith efforts on the part of the Juliana 21, the youth plaintiffs and their attorneys determined on Friday that there was no reason to continue pursuing these settlement discussions until decision-makers for the federal defendants come to the settlement table.
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Juliana v. U.S. youth plaintiffs (photo by Robin Loznak)
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What happened?
Here’s Julia Olson, chief legal counsel of Our Children’s Trust and co-counsel for Juliana v. U.S., to explain:
“While I am unable to share specifics from these confidential talks, I can say, without reservation, that we came to the table in good faith and sought to participate in a productive discussion on behalf of our young clients, as was requested by Judge Aiken. However, it takes the participation of both sides of the table to have meaningful communication and seek solutions. When and if the Biden administration wants to talk to the youth about their case, they will be ready. Right now, our goal is to get to trial as fast as possible. This is an emergency. A crisis. And yet these words still fall short in describing the climate situation and its devastating impact on these young Americans. We eagerly await a ruling from Judge Aiken on our amended complaint, which, if favorable, will put us back on track to trial in 2022.”
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Alex Loznak, Juliana youth plaintiff, amidst smoke from wildfires in Oregon, 2021 (Photo by Robin Loznak)
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COP26 Commences in Scotland
This week, global leaders, including President Biden, as well as climate youth activists like Vic Barrett, a Juliana youth plaintiff, are convening in Glasgow, Scotland for COP26, an international climate summit hosted by the United Nations. However, the attorneys at Our Children’s Trust see the U.S. government’s hypocrisy:
“Why does the U.S. proclaim to be a global leader when we still lag so far behind our democratic peers when it comes to protecting human rights, especially the rights of our most vulnerable: our children? Our President claims that the climate crisis is a ‘code red’ situation, but still opens up millions of acres in the Gulf of Mexico to oil drilling. Our UN diplomats claim a commitment to addressing the devastation of the climate crisis but then oppose an overwhelmingly supported resolution that proclaimed a healthy environment to be a human right. And our Department of Justice claims to represent the people of America but then seeks to block access to the courts to those very same citizens. These young people have been waiting six years to have their evidence heard and the issues determined by a court of law. When will our government act like the global leaders they claim to be and let these youth be heard?”
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“The Biden administration is unfortunately falling into the patterns of their predecessors. The patterns that have perpetuated this climate crisis and put the future of my peers and I at risk.”
- Vic Barrett, Juliana youth plaintiff
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So What Happens Now – and What Can You Do?
While settlement talks may have stalled, the Juliana v. U.S. case is still very much alive. The next step is the forthcoming ruling from Judge Ann Aiken on the plaintiffs’ motion to amend their complaint so that they can finally proceed to presenting their evidence at trial. The judge has had this motion under advisement since June 25. We are actively preparing for that ruling to come any day now.
Please support this legal effort today. Our Children’s Trust provides expert legal representation and support to these young people – and young people in multiple other climate legal actions around the world – all at no cost to the youth or their families. As we look forward to a 2022 that includes a state trial in Montana in Held v. State of Montana, and a significant chance of a federal trial in Juliana v. U.S, we need your support now more than ever. The facts are about to come out in courts of law where unconstitutional government complicity in the climate crisis will be proved. Please make a donation today to help us secure the most durable solution we have available to us: a declaratory judgment from our courts, the only branch of government that can hold our government leaders accountable and ensure that they take constitutionally compliant actions to fix the climate crisis, not continue to make it worse.
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“Isn’t the point of a right that you don’t have to ask Congress? Isn’t the point of a right that it doesn’t really matter what Congress thinks or what the majority of the American people think as to that right?"
– Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan, 11/1/21
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These 21 young people have become accustomed to their government making promises that they won’t keep. They are used to their government choosing tactics that delay, block, and obfuscate their right to being heard by a federal court. But they are not in any way deterred and neither are we. We will not give up until these young people – and all American children – have secured their legal right to a safe climate.
Onward,
The Team at Our Children’s Trust
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