New Jersey is the latest state to sue some of the world’s largest oil and gas companies, alleging they deceived the public for decades about the role fossil fuels play in exacerbating human-caused climate change and cost New Jerseyans billions of dollars in cleanup after deadly storms like Hurricane Sandy.

The lawsuit, filed in New Jersey Superior Court in October, claims Exxon Mobil, Shell Oil, Chevron, BP, ConocoPhillips, and the American Petroleum Institute trade group – of which all the companies are members — violated the state’s Consumer Fraud Act through disinformation campaigns that began in the 1980s.

“We know this is a tough fight,” New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin said. “I don't think the oil and gas companies that we're suing are going to lie down and say they're agreeing with us, but we're prepared to bring the fight on behalf of the residents of the state.”

New Jersey follows nearly two dozen other states, counties and cities across the country that have brought similar complaints against the fossil fuel industry in recent years. But none of these cases have been resolved yet, raising questions about how a legal team proves who’s at fault for a calamity as large as climate change.

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