Supreme Court Superfund Ruling Sparks Feud in Climate Cases (1)

State and local governments are sparring with Chevron, Shell, and other major oil industry players over the implications of a recent Supreme Court decision on climate litigation.

Lawyers representing Rhode Island and several California cities and counties say the high court’s April 20 decision in Atlantic Richfield v. Christian bolsters their argument that they’re entitled to pursue claims in state court against fossil fuel companies for their role in climate change.

Industry lawyers pushed back Tuesday, arguing that the two issues have little in common.

Pollution in the Atlantic Richfield case was limited to Montana. But because the climate cases ...