The National Association of Wholesaler-Distributors has filed an amicus curiae brief with the U.S. Supreme Court urging the Court to reverse a Colorado Supreme Court decision that allowed climate-related state law claims against energy companies to proceed in state court.

NAW’s filing in Suncor Energy (U.S.A.) Inc., et al. v. County Commissioners of Boulder County joins a growing list of amicus briefs submitted since May 15 by legal and industry organizations supporting the petitioners’ appeal before the high court.

“Boulder County is using state courts to accomplish what the Constitution forbids it from doing directly, regulating interstate and international commerce,” NAW Chief Government Relations Officer Brian Wild said in a news release from the association. “This threat is not limited to oil companies. The ‘marketing and sale’ framing of Boulder’s claims puts distributors of petroleum products, chemicals, lubricants and similar goods at real legal risk.”

The case stems from a 2018 lawsuit filed by Boulder County, the City of Boulder and San Miguel County, Colorado against ExxonMobil and Suncor Energy entities. The local governments allege the companies knowingly contributed to climate change and should bear financial responsibility for climate-related damages and adaptation costs.

The Colorado Supreme Court ruled in May 2025 that the plaintiffs’ claims could move forward under state law, rejecting arguments that federal law preempts such claims. The U.S. Supreme Court agreed earlier this year to hear the appeal, marking the first climate liability case of its kind to reach the nation’s highest court.

At issue is whether state courts can adjudicate claims tied to interstate and international greenhouse gas emissions, or whether such matters fall exclusively under federal law. Petitioners argue that allowing state-by-state litigation could create inconsistent legal standards affecting national energy policy and interstate commerce.

In its brief, NAW said the Colorado decision “threatens to unleash a flood of state-law claims seeking to regulate nationwide and worldwide emissions through state tort law.”

“With more than 90,000 local governments potentially able to file similar suits, the consequences for America’s supply chain would be severe,” Wild added. “The Supreme Court should reverse the Colorado Supreme Court’s decision.”

NAW’s brief added that distributors rely on a stable and predictable national energy market to serve customers across industries ranging from manufacturing to construction and transportation.

“Allowing individual states to impose liability for global emissions would create uncertainty throughout the supply chain and undermine the uniformity businesses depend upon,” NAW CEO Eric Hoplin said.

The Supreme Court is expected to hear arguments during its upcoming term. The Court also directed the parties to brief whether it has statutory and Article III jurisdiction to hear the dispute at this stage of litigation.