Court Rules in Favor of Youth Plaintiffs in Landmark Climate Change Case
A Montana state court upheld the constitutional right to a clean and healthful environment in Held v. Montana.
Published by The Lawfare Institute
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On Aug. 14, a Montana state court ruled in favor of the plaintiffs in Held v. Montana, the first-ever constitutional climate lawsuit to reach trial in the United States. The plaintiffs—16 young people between the ages of five and 22— sued the state, arguing that the government had violated their constitutional right to a clean environment.
The court found that a provision in the Montana Environmental Policy Act, which prevented state agencies from considering the impacts of greenhouse gas emissions in energy projects, had harmed the state’s environment and the young plaintiffs. Noting that “plaintiffs have a fundamental constitutional right to a clean and healthful environment, which includes climate as part of the environmental life-support system,” the court declared the provision unconstitutional.
Read the ruling here or below:
