Multnomah County suit against major oil companies over 2021 heat dome heads back to state court

The county seeks $50 million in damages and $1.5 billion in future damages.

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – A federal judge decided Tuesday that Multnomah County’s lawsuit against some of the largest fossil fuel companies in the world should resume in state court as the county seeks over $1 billion in damages from the deadly heat dome in 2021.

United States District Judge Adrienne Nelson upheld a recommendation in April from Magistrate Judge Youlee You that the case belongs in the Oregon Circuit Court rather than falling under federal jurisdiction.

The county sees the move to the Oregon Circuit Court as a success — aiming to show that pollution from the companies’ fossil fuel products significantly contributed to and exacerbated the heat dome.

Multnomah County filed the lawsuit in 2023 against major players in the fossil fuel industry — including Exxon Mobil, Shell, Chevron, BP, and ConocoPhillips — alleging fraud, public nuisance, negligence, and trespass.

The county claims the companies misrepresented the climate impacts of burning their fossil fuel products and aims to hold them accountable for the costs imposed on Multnomah County residents because of their “campaign of denial and deception.”

The fossil fuel companies tried to move the case to federal court “where they believe they have legal advantages,” Multnomah County said in a press release Tuesday.

“We look forward to the time when a jury will decide this case and deliver a resounding verdict,” said Jeffrey Simon, of Simon Greenstone & Panatier, co-counsel for Multnomah County. “That day will come, we hope soon, and we will be ready for it, no matter how long it takes. Justice demands it. We expect defendants to appeal the final decision to the Ninth Circuit because delay has been their chief tactic in climate litigation to date. For every day they tie us up with tenuous appeals, and avoid discovery while continuing to profit from their deception, justice remains delayed, and thereby denied.”

Multnomah County Chair Jessica Vega Pederson added, “Through this lawsuit, the County is holding the largest fossil fuel companies accountable for their contributions to human-caused climate pollution. We know that climate-induced weather events like the 2021 Heat Dome harm the residents of Multnomah County and cause real financial costs to our local government. The Court’s decision to hear this lawsuit in State Court validates our assertion that the case should be resolved here — it’s an important win for this community.”

Exxon Mobil, Shell, BP, and ConocoPhillips declined to comment. KOIN 6 News also reached out to Chevron. This story will be updated if we receive a response.

According to the county, Judge Nelson is the 12th federal district court judge to reject the fossil fuel companies’ arguments for the federal jurisdiction.

Since 2017, more than 25 other municipalities have filed similar lawsuits against the fossil fuel companies, Judge You wrote in the April 10 recommendation.

“By and large, though not exclusively, the plaintiffs have brought these suits in state court based on state law claims, primarily on the theory that the fossil fuel defendants failed to warn about the dangers of their products and are seeking damages for the impacts on public health and infrastructure wrought by climate change,” Judge You wrote.

Those cases were also remanded back to state courts, Multnomah County said.