Maine Sues Major Oil Companies Over ‘Ongoing Deception’ About Climate Change

The lawsuit is just the latest alleging a decades-long disinformation campaign about global warming and the companies' contribution to it.

The state of Maine has filed a lawsuit against five major oil companies and their top lobbying group, accusing them of carrying out a decades-long disinformation campaign about climate change and their contribution to it in order to maximize profits.

Maine Attorney General Aaron Frey, in his lawsuit filed Tuesday in state court, accuses Exxon Mobil, Shell, Chevron, BP, Sunoco and the American Petroleum Institute of withholding internal knowledge about fossil fuels’ catastrophic effects all while spinning public doubt.

“For over half a century, these companies chose to fuel profits instead of following their science to prevent what are now likely irreversible, catastrophic climate effects,” said Frey in a statement. “In so doing, they burdened the State and our citizens with the consequences of their greed and deception.”

Maine’s lawsuit seeks a jury trial and damages that would cover the costs of “past and future climate harms.” The state also wants the companies to “cease their ongoing deception in Maine.”

A spokesperson for Shell, in a statement Wednesday to HuffPost, said it agrees that “action is needed” on climate change, particularly in a “transition to a lower-carbon future,” but they argued that the issue should be handled in “a collaborative, society-wide approach.”