Dear Friends and Supporters,
Today, a divided U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit issued two decisions in Juliana v. United States that found for the 21 Juliana plaintiffs in nearly every respect, but ultimately ruled that the courts cannot stop the government from harming children with its policies that cause climate change.
Read our full press release here.
The majority decision of Judges Hurwitz and Murguia “reluctantly” found that the youths’ case should not proceed to trial, primarily reasoning that the federal courts are not equipped to order or enforce a science-based climate recovery plan like that requested by the 21 brave plaintiffs in the case. The dissenting opinion of Judge Staton, who disagreed with the majority decision, ruled that the climate recovery plan requested by the youth, while complex and involved, was absolutely manageable by the courts, and that the youths’ constitutional case should proceed to trial.
So, the 21 trail-blazing Juliana plaintiffs will promptly seek what is called a full “en banc” review of the decisions issued today. If granted, this full review would be conducted by a new panel of 11 Ninth Circuit judges, and could lead to new decisions replacing those issued by the three judges today.
Given the strength of the dissenting opinion of Judge Staton, articulating the apocalyptic conditions, the strength of the evidence, and the proper role of the government and the courts, we are optimistic that the 11 judge panel will reverse today's majority decision and finally set the case for trial.
Assuming the Ninth Circuit grants the en banc review, we expect briefing and argument of the case to be complete by year end. We will need your ongoing support to continue advancing Juliana through these next crucial steps. Please
help us ensure the strength and power of each of our next steps with your contribution to our effort at this critical time.
