WASHINGTON, Aug. 15 -- The Center for International Environmental Law issued the following news release on Aug. 14, 2023: In a landmark climate litigation case, a Montana state court ruled today in favor of youth plaintiffs who alleged the state violated their right to a "clean and healthful environment" by allowing fossil fuel development without considering its effect on the climate. The trial was the first of its kind in the US, relying on Montana's constitutional guarantee of the right to   more

HELENA, Montana, Aug. 15 -- The Sierra Club issued the following news release on Aug. 14, 2023: A judge ruled in favor of Montana youth climate plaintiffs today, declaring the state is violating its own constitution by not protecting the right to a clean environment. Held v. Montana was the first-ever youth climate case to go to trial in the U.S. and now is the first victory, setting a precedent for further lawsuits. "The Held case is a historic victory in the fight to ensure a livable future   more

WASHINGTON, Aug. 15 -- The Sunrise Movement issued the following statement on Aug. 14, 2023: * * * In response to a Montana judge ruling in favor of the young people who alleged the state violated their right to a "clean and healthful environment" by promoting the use of fossil fuels, Varshini Prakash, Executive Director of Sunrise Movement, released the following statement: "From the millions of young people who fought against the Willow Project to the 16 brave Montanans who won their case f  more

CAMBRIDGE, Massachusetts, Aug. 15 -- The Union of Concerned Scientists issued the following news release on Aug. 14, 2023: A Montana state judge today ruled that the State of Montana violated the constitutional rights of 16 youth plaintiffs by encouraging a fossil fuel economy despite scientific warnings about climate change. Judge Kathy Seeley found that the youth in Montana have "a fundamental constitutional right to a clean and healthful environment, which includes climate as part of that en  more

EUGENE, Oregon, Aug. 15 -- The Western Environmental Law Center issued the following news release on Aug. 14, 2023: * * * MEPA Limitations declared unconstitutional * * * This June, 16 young Montanans sat in Judge Kathy Seeley's courtroom in Montana's First Judicial District Court for the first-ever constitutional climate trial in the U.S. After three years of waiting, these youth finally had the chance to explain to the judge, and the world, how Montana's government is violating their const  more