This week, Our Children's Trust, filed another in its series of "kids climate cases"–cases raising climate change claims brought on behalf of children. OCT is the group behind the Juliana litigation, in addition to several cases brought against states in state courts.
The new case, Genesis B. v. Environmental Protection Agency, argues that the EPA has violated the constitutional rights of the plaintiffs by failing to act more aggressively to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Specifically, the Genesis plaintiffs argue that the EPA, and the federal government more broadly, have violated the plaintiffs' rights to Equal Protection and Due Process under the Fifth Amendment. Both sets of claims ask the courts to go well beyond existing law. For the former, the plaintiffs ask the courts recognize children as a protected class for the purposes of Equal Protection. For the latter, they claim that the EPA's failure to regulate more aggressively violates the plaintiffs right to life and their "fundamental right to a life sustaining climate system." To say these are audacious claims is an understatement.
The federal government's motion to dismiss should write itself. For starters, the plaintiffs face serious standing hurdles, particularly with regard to redressability. Standing is what ultimately grounded the Juliana litigation (though the judge has sought to revive it), and as this case was also filed within the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit (specifically, the Central District of California), standing concerns will cast a long shadow over this case too.
