Puerto Rico has become the latest governmental entity to launch a lawsuit against the major fossil fuel companies concerning tort claims related to climate change. These lawsuits have proliferated in state courts in recent years, following the U.S. Supreme Court's denial of federal jurisdiction in such cases. (There have been more than three dozen such cases filed.)

While none of these cases have yet proceeded to verdict (and some have been dismissed on various grounds), the fact that these lawsuits are continuing--and expanding in scope--indicates a belief that either these lawsuits are succeeding as a pressure tactic against major fossil fuel companies, or that there is a sufficient likelihood of a substantial recovery that additional state (or territorial) and local governments want to place a claim on those potential funds. The key takeaway here is that these lawsuits--despite the ongoing efforts by the fossil fuel companies to avoid liability--are not going away, and more are being filed.

The Commonwealth of Puerto Rico has accused [] petrochemical companies of deceiving the public about the effects associated with the use and burning of fossil fuels on the island, resulting in severe damage to Puerto Rico's natural resources. The U.S. territory became the latest government entity to slap major petrochemical companies with allegations they knew about the effects associated with the use of fossil fuels, yet continued to market and sell their products to consumers, leaving environmental contamination in their wake, in a complaint filed in the San Juan Trial Court on Monday.

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