Confirmed: NAM And API Both Want To Withdraw From "Kids' Climate Case" - Reuters
Two fossil fuel industry groups dropped their attempts to intervene in a court case over climate change this week after failing to reach an agreement on a unified legal position on climate science, court filings show.
The American Petroleum Institute (API) and the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM), prominent trade groups in the oil and gas industry, along with the American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers (AFPM), intervened in a federal case in which a group of teenagers sued the U.S. government for violating their constitutional rights by causing climate change.
The three groups were arguing that a judgment requiring the government to tighten environmental regulations would harm their business interests. But discord arose among them after a judge ordered them to submit a joint filing stating their views on climate science. A lawyer representing the three groups said in a court hearing on May 18 that they were unable to agree on the causes and effects of human activity and greenhouse gas emissions on the climate, transcripts of the proceedings show.
"It seems pretty clear that the trade group intervenors have recognized that there may be costs as well as benefits to intervention and that they might be better off leaving the defense of the case to the government," said Seth Jaffe, an environmental lawyer who is a partner at Foley Hoag in Boston. He is not involved in the case. NAM was the first to file its request to withdraw, submitting it to the court on Monday. API asked to withdraw on Thursday. AFPM has not yet responded to the judge's request.
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http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-climatechange-lawsuit-idUSKBN18M0DG