Obama Judge Dismisses Youth Climate Court Case – Watts Up With That?

Essay by Eric Worrall

h/t rhs; “… while this court is certainly troubled … this concern does not automatically confer … the power to act. …”

Judge dismisses suit by young climate activists against Trump’s pro-fossil fuel policies

Plaintiffs had ‘overwhelming evidence’ of climate crisis but a court injunction would be ‘unworkable’, ruling says

Maya Yang
Thu 16 Oct 2025 08.22 AEDT

The dismissal by US district judge Dana Christensen on Wednesday came after 22 plaintiffs, ages seven to 25 and from five states, sought to block three of the president’s executive orders, including those declaring a “national energy emergency” and seeking to “unleash American energy” – as well as one aimed at “reinvigorating” the US’s production of coal.

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In Wednesday’s ruling, Christensen said that the plaintiffs presented “overwhelming evidence that the climate is changing at a staggering pace, and that this change stems from the rise in atmospheric carbon dioxide, caused by the production and burning of fossil fuels”.

However, Christensen said: “Yet while this court is certainly troubled by the very real harms presented by climate change and the challenged [executive orders’] effect on carbon dioxide emissions, this concern does not automatically confer upon it the power to act.”

He added: “Granting plaintiffs’ injunction would require the defendant agencies, and – ultimately – this court, to scrutinize every climate-related agency action taken since” the start of Trump’s second presidency on 20 January 2025.

“In other words, this court would be required to monitor an untold number of federal agency actions to determine whether they contravene its injunction. This is, quite simply, an unworkable request for which plaintiffs provide no precedent,” Christensen continued.

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Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/law/2025/oct/15/youth-climate-activist-lawsuit-dismissed-trump-executive-orders

Judge Dana Christensen was appointed by President Obama in 2011.

Usually in these kinds of articles we report how Biden or Obama appointed judges issued activist rulings which force the Trump administration to appeal to the Supreme Court for a rapid resolution, so this is a welcome relief from the usual charade. Credit to Judge Christensen for adhering to the law, despite his obvious personal concerns about climate change.

But the plaintiffs intend to appeal the decision, so they might get lucky with the next judge.