Issue - June 2, 2026

Good morning. It’s Tuesday, June 2, and this week’s ESG Litigation Weekly covers Australia’s lawsuit against 3M seeking more than A$2 billion over alleged PFAS contamination at Defence bases, Argentina’s Supreme Court dismissal of a long-running environmental case against oil operators in the Neuquén Basin, the U.S. SEC’s proposal to rescind its 2024 climate disclosure rules, and more.

Australia Sues 3M Over PFAS Contamination at Defence Bases
The Commonwealth of Australia commenced Federal Court proceedings against 3M Australia Pty Ltd and 3M Company, seeking more than A$2 billion in damages linked to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) contamination at 28 Defence bases. The case concerns aqueous film-forming foam (AFFF), historically used for firefighting. The Commonwealth alleges 3M withheld information, misrepresented the effects of its PFAS-containing products, failed to fully disclose environmental risks, and gave disposal and safety assurances inconsistent with what it knew at the time. ABC News reported that 3M said it will defend the claims, adding that it never manufactured PFAS in Australia and stopped selling the products at issue there around two decades ago.
🔗 Read more → Australian Defence Ministers’ Press Release, ABC News

Argentina Supreme Court Dismisses Neuquén Basin Oil Environmental Suit
Argentina’s Supreme Court rejected a long-running environmental lawsuit brought by the Asociación de Superficiarios de la Patagonia against YPF, Chevron, Pan American Energy, Pluspetrol, Total Austral, Wintershall and other oil operators in the Neuquén Basin. The plaintiff sought remediation of alleged collective environmental damage linked to hydrocarbon activity, including impacts on soil, air, surface water and groundwater. The Court held that the claims remained vague and imprecise, and that the plaintiff had not identified the specific interjurisdictional environmental damage needed for the Court’s original jurisdiction. It also stated the case could not proceed as a broad investigation into conjectural harms.
🔗 Read more → Supreme Court of Argentina Ruling

Federal Court Denies California Bid to Halt Sable Pipeline Use
A federal judge denied the California Department of Parks and Recreation’s request for a preliminary injunction against Sable Offshore’s use of a four-mile pipeline segment beneath Gaviota State Park. California alleges Sable is trespassing because a prior easement expired in 2016, while the pipeline is being used to move crude oil from the Santa Ynez offshore system. The court held that California had not shown likely irreparable harm during the litigation, noting that the relevant segment had operated for decades without incident and that the 2015 spill involved a different pipeline segment.
🔗 Read more → Courthouse News Service (Article, Court Order)

Court Narrows Bumble Bee Forced Labor Suit, but Core Claims Continue
A U.S. federal court dismissed with prejudice Indonesian fishermen’s claims for injunctive relief against Bumble Bee Foods in a forced labor case, finding they lacked standing to seek supply chain reforms because they were no longer working on the vessels and had not shown ongoing injury. The plaintiffs allege Bumble Bee sourced tuna from vessels that relied on forced labor in violation of the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act (TVPRA). Separately, the court issued a tentative ruling that would largely deny Bumble Bee’s request to reconsider earlier rulings allowing the TVPRA claims to proceed, including on extraterritoriality, while correcting part of its prior reasoning.
🔗 Read more → CourtListener (Court Order 1, Court Order 2), Greenpeace’s Press Release

ACCC Sues Amazon AU Over Children’s Backpack Battery Warnings
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) commenced Federal Court proceedings against Amazon Commercial Services Pty Ltd (Amazon AU), alleging children’s unicorn backpacks sold through Amazon’s Australian marketplace failed to comply with mandatory button battery warning requirements. The backpacks included a detachable light-up plush toy containing button batteries. The ACCC alleges Amazon AU had possession or control of the products in its Australian fulfillment centers as part of its fulfillment by Amazon service, but the products or packaging lacked required warnings. The ACCC is seeking declarations, penalties, costs and other orders.
🔗 Read more → ACCC (Press Release, Concise Statement)

SEC Proposes Rescinding Climate Disclosure Rules
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) proposed rescinding its 2024 climate-related disclosure rules in their entirety. The stayed rules would have required public companies to disclose certain climate-related information in registration statements and annual reports, including greenhouse gas emissions, climate risk management, and severe weather-related financial statement effects. The SEC says the rules exceed its statutory authority, are inconsistent with a registrant-specific materiality approach, and would impose costs not justified by informational benefits. The public comment period will remain open for 60 days after publication in the Federal Register.
🔗 Read more → U.S. SEC (Press Release, Chair Statement, Proposed Release)

New York Budget Changes SEQRA and Climate Law Implementation
New York enacted FY27 budget legislation that reforms the State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQRA) and changes implementation of the state’s climate law. The SEQRA changes exempt qualifying housing and infrastructure projects from environmental review where they meet criteria such as being on previously disturbed sites, connecting to existing water and sewer systems, and staying within unit caps. Covered categories also include certain parks, trails, New York City public schools, water and wastewater projects, and green infrastructure retrofits. Bloomberg Government reported that the budget measure also delayed climate-law implementation and changed greenhouse gas accounting rules, drawing criticism from environmental advocates.
🔗 Read more → Governor Hochul’s Press Release, Assembly Bill A10008C, Bloomberg Government

California CARB Adopts Updates to Cap-and-Invest Program Rules
The California Air Resources Board (CARB) adopted updates to the state’s Cap-and-Invest Program, formerly Cap-and-Trade, following legislation extending the program through 2045. The changes tighten allowance budgets to align with California’s 2030 and 2045 climate targets, including the removal of 118 million allowances from program budgets. CARB also said the updates dedicate 80% of allowances to directly benefit Californians, provide bill credits, expand manufacturing decarbonization incentives, and add near-term compliance support for industry. The Associated Press reported that environmental groups criticized the changes as weakening the program, while oil industry representatives suggested the rules still do not sufficiently address energy affordability.
🔗 Read more → CARB (Press Release, Cap-and-Invest Program), The Associated Press

UN Carbon Market Body Adopts a New N₂O Methodology
The Article 6.4 Supervisory Body adopted a new methodology allowing projects that reduce nitrous oxide emissions from nitric acid production to generate credits under the Paris Agreement Crediting Mechanism. Nitric acid production is a significant industrial source of N₂O, a highly potent greenhouse gas, and the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) notes that many plants in developing countries do not yet widely use abatement technologies. The Body also adopted a tool on lock-in risk and revised additionality requirements, reflecting continued work to build integrity safeguards into Article 6.4 crediting.
🔗 Read more → UNFCCC (Press Release, Article 6.4 Supervisory Body Meeting Report)

Additional Notable Updates:
The IFRS Foundation and GRI jointly published a statement reaffirming their commitment to complementary disclosures.
🔗 Read more → Joint Statement “Facilitating efficient reporting when using the GRI and ISSB Standards”
TISFD launched a framework to help organizations identify and disclose people-related impacts, dependencies, risks and opportunities.
🔗 Read more → The Taskforce on Inequality and Social-related Financial Disclosures (The TISFD Framework Beta Version 0.1, Executive Summary, Provide Feedback by 07/31/2026)

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Groups Ask Regulators to Review TotalEnergies Investor Climate Claims
ClientEarth, Friends of the Earth France and Notre Affaire à Tous sent letters to France’s Autorité des marchés financiers (AMF) and the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) asking regulators to examine whether TotalEnergies’ investor communications risk misleading the market. The groups say TotalEnergies presents its strategy as supporting the Paris Agreement and the energy transition, uses metrics that may imply alignment with EU targets and IEA scenarios, and describes fossil gas as enabling emissions reductions. The request follows a 2025 Paris court ruling against TotalEnergies over consumer-facing climate claims.
🔗 Read more → ClientEarth (Press Release, Letter to AMF, Letter to ESMA)

Study Says Corporate Net-Zero Targets Are Not Enough on Their Own
A CEPR VoxEU column reviews whether corporate net-zero commitments are followed by emissions cuts or stronger climate governance. Drawing on nearly 2,000 large companies in high-emitting sectors, the authors find only weak evidence of immediate emissions reductions after companies adopt net-zero targets. However, adopters appear more likely to strengthen forward-looking practices, such as climate scenario planning, internal carbon pricing and disclosure of actions to meet emissions targets. The findings suggest net-zero pledges should not be treated as reliable indicators of near-term emissions performance without supporting governance, interim targets and investment plans.
🔗 Read more → Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR)

ESG Factors Are Becoming More Relevant in Damages and Valuation
A Global Arbitration Review (GAR) Insight article examines how ESG issues are increasingly affecting business valuation and damages analysis in arbitration. The authors note that ESG-related disputes can include stranded asset claims, greenwashing-related losses, shareholder disputes over ESG policies and corruption-related claims. Even where a dispute is not directly about ESG, valuation experts may need to assess whether ESG risks or opportunities affect cash flows, discount rates, market comparables or asset obsolescence. The publication also indicates that expanding ESG disclosures and valuation standards could make these factors easier to assess, although US policy shifts have increased uncertainty.
🔗 Read more → GAR “ESG’s rising influence and challenges in business valuation and arbitration”

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