A Manhattan trial court ruled Tuesday that Exxon Mobil did not mislead investors on climate change risks.
Judge Barry Ostrager concluded that the Office of the Attorney General failed to prove Exxon made false material disclosures to the public in violation of the Martin Act § 352 and Executive law§ 63(12).
The findings at trial, which began in October, suggest that Exxon maintained different books for internal assessing of climate risks and for outside investors. Exxon Mobil’s internal corporate models did not conform to the proxy cost of carbon presented to investors. Exxon claimed these disclosures “were not intended to enable investors to conduct meaningful economic analysis” and it did not publish all details due to “competitive considerations.”
The Attorney General’s office did not demonstrate that Exxon’s practices mislead reasonable investors and, therefore, were consistent with generally accepted accounting principles.
The court also stated that, “nothing in this opinion is intended to absolve ExxonMobil from responsibility for contributing to climate change through the emission of greenhouse gases in the production of its fossil fuel products.”
New York is not the only state where Exxon faces legal charges. In October the Attorney General of Massachusetts filed a similar lawsuit against Exxon for investor and consumer fraud.