Alito Recuses Himself From Supreme Court Climate Case

The U.S. Supreme Court says Justice Samuel Alito will not participate in a case testing whether Colorado local governments can use state-law claims to seek damages from energy companies for climate-related harms. The court’s clerk informed the parties of Alito’s decision in a letter that gave no reason for his recusal. The court is scheduled to hear arguments in Suncor Energy v. County Commissioners of Boulder County on October 5, 2026, with eight justices participating. The case concerns claims brought by Boulder County, the City of Boulder and San Miguel County against energy companies, including Suncor Energy and ExxonMobil. The local governments are seeking compensation for alleged harms associated with climate change. The dispute is not about whether the companies caused climate change. The justices are considering whether federal law displaces the local governments’ state-law claims. Energy companies argue that climate change and emissions are matters of federal law and that the claims cannot proceed under state legal theories.