Attorney General Bonta Issues Statement on the United States District Court for the Northern District of California’s Ruling to Remand ExxonMobil Plastics Lawsuit to State Court

OAKLAND – California Attorney General Rob Bonta today issued the following statement regarding the United States District Court for the Northern District of California’s ruling granting the California Department of Justice (DOJ)’s motion to remand its case against ExxonMobil to state court:

“ExxonMobil has been deceiving the public to convince us that plastic recycling could solve the plastic waste and pollution crisis when they knew this wasn’t possible. We are pleased with the Court’s decision to remand our plastic deception case against ExxonMobil to state court where it rightfully belongs. At the California Department of Justice, we stand ready to litigate this case, which directly affects California’s laws and its residents, and hold ExxonMobil fully accountable for its role in actively creating and exacerbating the plastic pollution crisis through its campaign of deception.”  

BACKGROUND

In 2022, the Attorney General launched an investigation into the fossil fuel and petrochemical industries for their role in causing the global plastic waste and pollution crisis. As part of its investigation, the DOJ issued investigative subpoenas to ExxonMobil and related plastics industry groups to seek details about the nature and extent of the company’s deception efforts. The DOJ has actively been conducting the investigation into the petrochemical industry, including subpoenas that uncovered never-before-seen documents, culminating in the lawsuit against ExxonMobil filed in the Superior Court of San Francisco County, a California state court, last year. 

On November 1, 2024, ExxonMobil filed a notice of removal to federal court, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, in this case. On December 9, 2024, the California Department of Justice filed a motion to remand in the federal removal action. In its decision today, the District Court granted DOJ’s motion and remanded the case against ExxonMobil to state court. 

A copy of the ruling can be found here.