In re United States

Background

The Government asked the Court to pause a climate-related lawsuit while it sought an emergency order asking the Court to dismiss the case. Plaintiffs in the district court say government actions and inactions have so badly damaged the planet that their constitutional rights to life and liberty are threatened, and they asked the court to create a national plan to stabilize the climate and restore the Earth’s energy balance.

Reasoning

The Court weighed whether an immediate pause (a stay) was appropriate while the Government seeks an extraordinary order called mandamus. To get such a stay here, the Government needed a fair chance that most Justices would grant the extraordinary order and to show it would suffer irreparable harm without a stay. The Court found the Government’s petition does not have a fair prospect of success because the Government can likely obtain adequate relief in the Ninth Circuit. The opinion cites rules and past practice saying the Government should first pursue relief in the intermediate appellate court. The Ninth Circuit had previously denied the Government’s requests without prejudice, and the Supreme Court concluded the Government should try that route first.

Real world impact

As a result, the Supreme Court denied the stay without prejudice and vacated the earlier administrative order from the Chief Justice. That means the Government must again seek relief from the Ninth Circuit before returning to the Supreme Court, and the district-court trial could proceed unless the Ninth Circuit or another court intervenes. This decision is procedural and not a final ruling on the underlying climate claims.