MONTANA — A federal appeals court upheld the dismissal of a climate lawsuit against President Trump, saying the plaintiffs did not have legal standing to bring the case.
The court filing showed the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit affirmed the U.S. District Court for the District of Montana on June 2, 2026.
In Lighthiser v. Trump, the three-judge panel ruled that the 22 young plaintiffs could only speculate that President Trump's fossil fuel-boosting executive orders directly caused the climate-related injuries they alleged such as asthma and heat-related illness.
Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen called the ruling a major outcome for the state.
“This is a huge win for Montana. My office was happy to step in and help the Trump Administration litigate this case. We couldn’t have asked for a better outcome, as now two courts have proven that we were right all along — this case was nothing more than an attempt to stop President Trump’s pro-energy policies and push a bad-for-Montana liberal climate agenda. The courts are not meant to advance political agendas, but uphold the law, which they did today,” Knudsen said.
Keep it Clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd,
racist or sexually-oriented language. PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK. Don't Threaten. Threats of harming another
person will not be tolerated. Be Truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone
or anything. Be Nice. No racism, sexism or any sort of -ism
that is degrading to another person. Be Proactive. Use the 'Report' link on
each comment to let us know of abusive posts. Share with Us. We'd love to hear eyewitness
accounts, the history behind an article.
(0) comments
Welcome to the discussion.
Log In
Keep it Clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Don't Threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be Truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be Nice. No racism, sexism or any sort of -ism that is degrading to another person.
Be Proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
Share with Us. We'd love to hear eyewitness accounts, the history behind an article.