Exxon, BP, Philips Sued as Responsible in 2021 Heat Wave Death

The daughter of a Washington state woman who died due to overheating is seeking damages from fossil fuel companies such as ExxonMobil Corp., saying the energy giants caused unfathomable pain and suffering by worsening man-made climate change.

Juliana Leon died of hyperthermia driving home from a doctor’s appointment on a 108-degree day in June 2021—the hottest day ever recorded in Washington state, according to the complaint filed Thursday in the Superior Court of Washington for King County.

Leon’s car air conditioning wasn’t working, so she drove with the windows down. But she soon became overwhelmed by the heat and pulled off the highway, according to the complaint. Unable to call for help, she died with an internal body temperature of 110 degrees Fahrenheit, the lawsuit says. A passerby found her about two hours after she parked her car.

“As a resident of temperate Western Washington, Julie never could have imagined dying in this way,” the lawsuit says. “Defendants, which are manufacturers, distributors, and sellers of fossil fuels, knew differently.”

The lawsuit marks the first wrongful death case against fossil fuel companies for their role in global warming. But it joins a host of other state-level climate change deception cases against many of the same entities.

Leon’s daughter, Misti Leon, is Leon’s estate’s representative in the lawsuit. Defendants include Exxon, BP PLC, Chevron Corp., Shell PLC, ConocoPhillips Co., Olympic Pipeline Co., and related entities.

Claims include alleged violations of Washington state laws related to wrongful death, product liability, and public nuisance. Leon’s daughter and the estate are seeking damages for emotional distress, medical and funeral expenses, and more.

The companies’ “actions and omissions” regarding fossil fuels and climate change “deprived the public, including Julie, of the information necessary to mitigate climate change decades ago,” according to the lawsuit.

Thursday’s wrongful death suit could lay the groundwork for a criminal homicide prosecution approach to climate accountability, Aaron Regunberg, accountability project director for Public Citizen’s climate program, said in a press release.

“These fossil fuel actors should be held accountable to the victims of their lethal conduct,” Regunberg said. “Prosecutors across the country should take note of this new wrongful death suit and carefully consider how the climate effects their constituents are experiencing fit the criminal laws they are charged with enforcing.”

Exxon and the American Petroleum Institute, which isn’t named as a defendant, didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

Bechtold Law Firm PLLC and Bronsdon Law Firm PLLC represent Misti Leon and the estate.

The case is Leon v. Exxon Mobil Corp., Wash. Super. Ct., No. 25-2-15986-8, complaint filed 5/29/25.