Issue - October 28, 2025

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Good morning. It’s Tuesday, October 28, and this week’s ESG Litigation Weekly covers ExxonMobil’s lawsuit challenging California’s climate disclosure laws, a French court ruling that TotalEnergies misled consumers with carbon neutrality and transition claims, Filipino Typhoon Odette survivors planning to sue Shell for climate damage, and more.

⚖️ ESG Casefile

ExxonMobil Sues California Over Climate Disclosure Laws, Citing Compelled Speech
ExxonMobil sued California, arguing two new climate disclosure laws violate the First Amendment and conflict with federal rules. SB 253 requires companies with over $1 billion in revenue doing business in California to measure and publicly disclose greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions annually. SB 261 requires companies with over $500 million in revenue to publish biennial climate-related financial risk reports aligned with recognized frameworks. ExxonMobil says the laws compel speech, regulate extraterritorially, and that SB 261 is preempted by federal securities law. The complaint seeks to block enforcement.
🔗 Read more → Bloomberg, Court Filing (PDF via CourtListener)

Typhoon Odette Survivors Notify Shell of Intended UK Lawsuit Over Climate Damages
Sixty-seven Filipino survivors of Typhoon Odette sent a Letter Before Action (LBA) to Shell’s London headquarters, signaling plans to sue for compensation and potential injunctive relief. The claim alleges Shell’s conduct contributed to climate change, which made the 2021 storm more likely and more severe, citing attribution science and a study finding anthropogenic global warming more than doubled the likelihood of a compound event like Odette. Proceedings would be brought in UK courts applying Philippine law, with formal filings anticipated in December 2025 if no agreement is reached. It would also be the first civil claim to directly link oil-and-gas climate impacts to deaths and injuries already suffered in the Global South.
🔗 Read more → The Odette Case

NY Court Orders DEC to Issue CLCPA Regulations by February 6, 2026
On October 24, 2025, the New York State Supreme Court in Albany County ruled that the state is violating its Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (CLCPA) by failing to promulgate the CLCPA-compliant regulations by the statutory deadline, and directed the Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) to put forward regulations to reduce GHG emissions by February 6, 2026. The lawsuit was filed by Citizen Action of New York, PUSH Buffalo, Sierra Club, and WE ACT for Environmental Justice. The CLCPA, signed into law in 2019, requires New York to reduce GHG emissions 40% by 2030 and 85% by 2050 from 1990 levels.
🔗 Read more → Court Decision & Order (PDF via Earthjustice)

Groups Sue to Block Exemptions from HON Air Toxics Rule
Community, health, and environmental organizations filed suit in Washington, D.C., to stop an executive action that would exempt 50 chemical plants from the EPA’s Hazardous Organic National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants (HON) protections by extending compliance deadlines by two years. The complaint challenges the Trump administration’s move to delay controls and fenceline monitoring for carcinogens such as ethylene oxide and chloroprene. Plaintiffs cite EPA estimates that the 2024 HON rule would cut toxic emissions by more than 6,200 tons annually and reduce air toxics-related cancer risks near chemical manufacturing facilities by about 96 percent.
🔗 Read more → NRDC (Press Release, Court Filing)

Youth Plaintiffs Appeal Dismissal in Lighthiser v. Trump
Twenty-two young Americans filed an appeal in Lighthiser v. Trump, a federal right-to-life case challenging three executive orders from President Trump’s second term that direct agencies to expand fossil fuels, hinder clean energy, and limit public access to climate science. The appeal follows the recent Montana district court ruling that dismissed the case and denied a preliminary injunction, finding it lacked power to redress the injuries under Article III of the U.S. Constitution and citing Juliana v. United States. Plaintiffs argue that the court can craft a remedy and that reliance on Juliana to dismiss the case was mistaken.
🔗 Read more → Our Children’s Trust

🏛️ Regulatory Developments

Parliament Rejects Committee Mandate on Simplifying Sustainability and Due Diligence Rules
The European Parliament rejected the Legal Affairs Committee’s negotiating mandate to simplify sustainability reporting and due diligence obligations, with 309 votes in favor, 318 against, and 34 abstentions. Under Rule 72(3), Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) will consider amendments at the November 13 plenary in Brussels. If adopted, Parliament can begin talks with EU governments, which already set their position in June, to finalize the legislation by the end of 2025. The proposal is part of the Omnibus I simplification package and seeks to ease administrative burdens following the delayed application of reporting and due diligence requirements.
🔗 Read more → European Parliament

Commission Proposes EUDR Adjustments to Streamline Due Diligence and Timelines
The European Commission proposed targeted measures to smooth EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) implementation. Downstream operators and traders would no longer file due diligence statements, with a single submission by the first placer covering the supply chain. Micro and small primary operators from low-risk countries would make a simple one-off declaration. Application would phase to December 30, 2026, for micro and small firms, while large and medium companies remain on December 30, 2025, with a six-month grace period for checks and enforcement.
🔗 Read more → European Commission, Proposal for Amending EUDR (PDF)

New Zealand to Raise Climate Reporting Threshold and Ease Liability for Issuers
New Zealand will adjust its climate reporting regime to support capital markets. The government plans to lift the mandatory reporting threshold for listed issuers from NZ$60 million market capitalization to NZ$1 billion, adjust director and company liability settings to reduce cost and risk, and remove managed investment schemes from the scope. Officials say the move reduces compliance costs and avoids discouraging listings.
🔗 Read more → New Zealand Government, Capital Markets Reforms Fact Sheet

White House Grants Two-Year Exemption from EPA Copper Smelting Rule
President Trump issued a proclamation granting a two-year exemption from the EPA’s 2024 Primary Copper Smelting NESHAP “Copper Rule” for certain sources, citing Clean Air Act section 112(i)(4). The measure extends all compliance deadlines by two years and keeps affected facilities on pre-rule standards during the exemption. The proclamation says copper is critical to national security and that required emission-control technologies are not commercially available. It warns that imposing the rule could accelerate closures in a sector where only two primary copper smelters remained operating across the United States in 2024.
🔗 Read more → The White House

GHG Protocol Opens Public Consultations on Scope 2 and Electricity-Sector Consequential Accounting
The Greenhouse Gas Protocol launched a 60-day consultation on two items. One proposes updates to the 2015 Scope 2 Guidance, retaining dual location-based and market-based reporting while adding hourly matching and deliverability to improve accuracy, as well as exemption thresholds associated with organizational coverage, load-profile options, and a legacy clause for existing contractual commitments. The second seeks feedback on consequential accounting methods to estimate system-wide impacts from actions such as renewable energy procurement and investment beyond an organization’s operational boundaries. The consultation runs from October 20 to December 19, 2025, with a second public consultation on scope 2 topics in 2026 and final publication expected in 2027.
🔗 Read more → GHG Protocol (Scope 2 Consultation Document, Consequential Electricity-Sector Emissions Impacts Consultation Document, Scope 2 Survey Link, Consequential Electricity-Sector Emissions Impacts Survey Link)

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🧼 Greenwashing Watch

Paris Court Rules TotalEnergies Misled Consumers on Net-Zero and Transition Claims
The Paris Civil Court of Justice found TotalEnergies engaged in misleading commercial practices by promoting an “ambition to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050” and “to be a major player in the energy transition” on its website, which the court said could mislead consumers about the scope of the company’s commitments. The court ordered TotalEnergies to cease the claims within one month, under a €10,000 per day penalty for delay, and to publish the court decision on its French homepage for 180 days. The case was filed in 2022 by Friends of the Earth France, Greenpeace France, and Notre Affaire à Tous, with ClientEarth’s support.
🔗 Read more → Les Amis de la Terre France (Press Release, Court Ruling in French)

European Airlines Scale Back Offset Claims Amid Legal and Regulatory Scrutiny
European airlines are retreating from broad offsetting claims after court and regulatory actions. A Dutch court ruled KLM misled consumers with vague ads about reducing flight environmental impacts, and a German court barred Lufthansa from saying passengers could compensate for flight emissions. The case of the European Commission probing 20 carriers for misleading greenwashing practices from 2024 is still pending. Some firms have changed marketing: Norwegian Air removed climate claims in booking flows, Wizz Air dropped offset offers, and Air France no longer sells offsets and instead suggests contributions to sustainable aviation fuel. The director general of BEUC, the European umbrella consumer group, says greenwashing remains widespread despite adjustments.
🔗 Read more → France 24/AFP

💡 Insight of the Week

How Climate Framework Laws Drive Real-World Impact
Analysis from LSE’s Grantham Research Institute finds climate framework laws shape action through six provisions: targets and carbon budgets, reporting and review requirements, economy-wide and sectoral plans and policies, mandates to integrate climate in public decisions, access to independent expert advice, and public participation processes. As of October 2025, there are 1,500+ climate laws worldwide, including 75 framework laws across 69 countries. While attributing real-economy impacts to climate framework laws is challenging since they operate alongside sectoral rules and climate policies, they increasingly show value by improving cross-sector coordination, countering political short-termism, reducing piecemeal planning, and tightening accountability for implementation.
🔗 Read more → Grantham Research Institute

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