California has filed a lawsuit against five of the largest oil companies in the world over a “decades-long campaign of deception” that led to climate change-related events such as storms and wildfires, which caused billions of dollars in damages and harmed thousands of residents. 

The five companies are ExxonMobil, Shell, Chevron, ConocoPhillips and BP, as well as trade association the American Petroleum Institute (API). 

Attorney general Rob Bonta said: “Oil and gas companies have privately known the truth for decades – that the burning of fossil fuels leads to climate change – but have fed us lies and mistruths to further their record-breaking profits at the expense of our environment. Enough is enough.

“With our lawsuit, California becomes the largest geographic area and the largest economy to take these giant oil companies to court.”