March 20, 2025: Utah Supreme Court Issues Partial Win for Youth Plaintiffs

The Utah Supreme Court today issued a ruling in the youth-led constitutional climate lawsuit Natalie R. v. State of Utah, which allows the plaintiffs to continue their legal efforts to challenge specific state actions promoting fossil fuel development. The ruling clears the way for the youth to amend their complaint, focusing on how state actions that endanger plaintiffs’ health and safety and contribute to hazardous air quality and climate change violate their constitutional rights to life and liberty. This decision also confirms that Utah’s energy laws do not mandate automatic approval of fossil fuel projects, granting the state full discretion to reject fossil fuel development because of climate change, including coal mining. 

Read the press release here.