Despite making climate policy a cornerstone of his agenda, President Joe Biden and his advisers find building consensus difficult. Even after notching legislative wins, including the largest-ever federal investment in clean energy, the president is continually pressured by extremists within his party who are dissatisfied with any policy that stops short of keeping fossil fuels in the ground.

Some state and local governments have adopted a more radical approach by filing lawsuits in an effort to ban the use of fossil fuels. In essence, it is an “end-run,” using the courts to avoid passing bills in the federal or state legislatures to accomplish their extreme policy goals. In recent years, over two dozen state and municipal entities have filed lawsuits against U.S.-based oil and gas producers, seeking monetary damages for their alleged contributions to climate change.