In a recent development, Democratic attorneys general from nine states and Washington, D.C., have engaged the services of the same law firm, Sher Edling LLP, to represent them in lawsuits against oil companies.
This law firm, which specializes in climate-related cases, has also made significant donations to the Democratic Attorneys General Association (DAGA), an organization that supports the election of these same officials.
According to The Washington Free Beacon, Sher Edling has made two substantial donations to DAGA, totaling $49,000. These contributions, made in November 2023 and September 2024, are the only ones the firm has made as a collective entity. However, individual partners of the firm have also made smaller donations to state-level campaigns and larger contributions to federal campaigns.
These financial exchanges highlight the symbiotic relationship between Sher Edling and the Democratic attorneys general. The partnership enables Democrats to publicly challenge the oil industry, a frequent target of progressive criticism, with minimal risk. Simultaneously, the lawsuits offer Sher Edling the prospect of a substantial financial reward.
Consequently, Sher Edling has a vested interest in supporting DAGA's efforts to elect and reelect officials who have previously hired the firm or may do so in the future. The firm's donations also directly benefit several of these officials, including DAGA's co-chair Kathy Jennings, vice chair Keith Ellison, and executive committee members Rob Bonta and Andrea Joy Campbell, all of whom have engaged Sher Edling's services in their official capacities.
When Sher Edling made its first donation, it was representing four states and D.C. in lawsuits against oil companies. Since then, it has initiated four additional similar lawsuits on behalf of other Democratic attorneys general and entered into a contract with a fifth state, Michigan, to represent it in a potential case. All these cases are currently pending before state judges.
The lawsuits accuse major oil producers, such as Chevron, ExxonMobil, Shell, and BP, of misleading the public about the environmental consequences of their products. The suits argue that these companies should be held financially accountable for global warming. If successful, the courts could compel the oil industry defendants to pay for weather-related damages, a move that experts suggest could jeopardize the companies' survival.
Sher Edling's litigation efforts are funded by environmental grantmaking foundations, including the Tides Foundation, Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation, MacArthur Foundation, William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, and Rockefeller Brothers Fund. These organizations have collectively donated nearly $14 million to the firm since 2017.
The contracts between Sher Edling and the states could become even more profitable for the firm. If the lawsuits are successful and the defendants are ordered to pay damages, Sher Edling will receive a percentage of the damages as compensation. Although the exact amounts have not been specified, it is widely anticipated that they could amount to billions of dollars.
Sher Edling's near-monopoly on representing states in these cases increases the likelihood of it receiving such a payment if any of the lawsuits are successful. This arrangement also allows Democratic attorneys general to publicize lawsuits against oil companies without having to allocate official resources to them.
"The climate crisis [oil companies] have caused is undeniable. It is time they pay to abate the harm they have caused," Bonta stated after California filed a lawsuit against oil companies in September 2023.
Ellison echoed this sentiment in 2020, stating, "It's only fair that, as our complaint states, the parties who have profited from avoiding the consequences and costs of dealing with global warming bear the costs of those impacts, rather than Minnesota taxpayers, residents, or broader segments of the public."
The concerted effort to sue oil companies began in 2016 when Sher Edling was established in San Francisco to lead these lawsuits. Since then, the firm has filed cases on behalf of nine states and numerous city and county governments.
Currently, it has pending cases in jurisdictions that house over 25 percent of Americans. The firm's caseload is so extensive that it recently requested a 60-day extension in a Maryland case due to numerous upcoming court deadlines.
In response to these developments, Sher Edling spokesman John Lamson stated that Democratic attorneys general "are fighting back against fascism." DAGA, however, has not commented on the matter.
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