Still Not at All: Environmental Sustainability in the Supreme Court

UMKC Law Review, Volume 92, Pp. 724-735 (2024).

13 Pages Posted: 16 Jul 2024

See all articles by James R. May

James R. May

Washburn University - Washburn University School of Law; Widener University Delaware Law School; Haub School of Law at Pace University

Date Written: June 01, 2024

Abstract

This article serves as a follow-up to a study I published in 2010 about the extent to which “sustainability” and its siblings is reflected in litigation in the United States (not at all). It takes a fresh look and finds express invocation of sustainability still lacking not only in the U.S. Supreme Court but virtually throughout the U.S. federal judicial system – comprised of the Supreme Court, 13 federal appellate courts, and 94 federal district courts. Part II tells the story of sustainable development’s continued march as a legal principle. Part III engages sustainability jurisprudence before the U.S. Supreme Court and otherwise in the federal court system. It concludes that not only the U.S. Supreme Court but the entire federal judicial system seems at worst hostile to, at best agnostic about, and most likely ignorant of, sustainability. What is surprising is the scant extent to which litigants invoke sustainability, except, for the most part, in amicus briefs in recent cases involving corporate disclosure requirements, suggesting overlooked opportunity. If at all, “greenwashing” cases – lawsuits alleging deceptive claims of sustainability presently percolating throughout the federal system – offer the most likely scenario for the U.S. Supreme Court to recognize sustainability. 

Suggested Citation

May, James, Still Not at All: Environmental Sustainability in the Supreme Court (June 01, 2024). UMKC Law Review, Volume 92, Pp. 724-735 (2024)., Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=4895414 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.4895414

James May (Contact Author)

Washburn University - Washburn University School of Law ( email )

1700 SW College Ave.
Topeka, KS 66621
United States

Widener University Delaware Law School ( email )

4601 Concord Pike
Wilmington, DE 19803-0406
United States

Haub School of Law at Pace University ( email )

78 N. Broadway
White Plains, NY 10603
United States

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