Following the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s action in March 2025 to end its defense of the final climate-related disclosure rules (Climate Rules), the Attorneys General of Massachusetts and other states (intervenor States) filed a motion to hold the case in abeyance “to maintain the status quo and preserve judicial resources while SEC evaluates its course of action” with respect to the Climate Rules. The Attorneys General of the State of Iowa and other states opposed the motion and requested the court proceed to a final decision.
On April 24, 2025, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit issued an order granting the intervenor States’ motion to hold the case in abeyance and directed the SEC “to file within 90 days a status report advising whether the Commission intends to review or reconsider the rules at issue in this case.” Further, the court order states that if the Commission determines not to take action with respect to the Climate Rules, “then the status report should address whether the Commission will adhere to the rules if the petitions for review are denied and, if not, why the Commission will not review or reconsider the rules at this time.”
