Case 1:20-cv-01429-UNA Document 1-1 Filed 10/23/20 Page 1 of 299 PageID #: 137
`Case 1:20-cv-01429—UNA Document 1-1 Filed 10/23/20 Page 1 of 299 PageID #: 137
`
`EXHIBIT 1
`
`EXHIBIT 1
`
`

`

`Case 1:20-cv-01429-UNA Document 1-1 Filed 10/23/20 Page 2 of 299 PageID #: 138
`
`C~5 ~
`
`ALIAS PRAECIPE
`
`TO: Prothonotary
`Superior Court
`Leonard L. Williams Justice Center
`500 N. King Street
`Wilmington, DE 19801
`
`PLEASE ISSUE A SUMMONS and a copy of the complaint to Brandywine
`
`Process Servers, commanding them to summon and direct the below-named
`
`Defendant to appear and file an answer to the complaint by serving its registered
`
`agent pursuant to 8 Del. C. § 321:
`
`CHEVRON CORPORATION
`c/o Corporation System, Inc.
`251 Little Falls Drive
`Wilmington, DE 19808
`
`Dated: September 18, 202
`
`OF COUNSEL:
`
`Victor M. Sher
`Matthew K. Edling
`Corrie J. Yackulic
`Michael H. Burger
`Timothy R. Sloane
`Martin D. Quiiiones
`Katie H. Jones
`Adam M. Shapiro
`Stephanie D. Biehl
`Nicole E. Teixeira
`Quentin C. Karpilow
`SHER EDLING LLP
`100 Montgomery Street, Suite 1410
`San Francisco, CA 94104
`
`KAT
`JENNINGS,
`ttornev General of the State of
`Delaware
`
`/s/ Christian Douglas Wri ht~
`Christian Douglas Wright (#3554)
`Director of Impact Litigation
`Jameson A.L. Tweedie (#4927)
`Special Assistant Deputy Attorney
`General
`Ralph K. Durstein III (#0912)
`Deputy Attorney General
`DELAWARE DEPARTMENT OF
`JUSTICE
`820 N. French Street
`Wilmington, DE 19801
`(302) 577-8600
`christian.wright@delaware.gov
`jameson.tweedie@delaware.gov
`
`4
`
`

`

`Case 1:20-cv-01429-UNA Document 1-1 Filed 10/23/20 Page 3 of 299 PageID #: 139
`
`ralph.durstein@delaware.gov
`
`Attorneys foN Plaintiff
`
`(628) 231-2500
`vic@sheredling.com
`matt@sheredling.com
`corrie@sheredling.com
`michael@sheredling.com
`tim@sheredling.com
`marty@sheredling.com
`katie@sheredling.com
`adam@sheredling.com
`stephanie@sheredling.com
`nicole@sheredling.com
`quentin@sheredling.com
`
`

`

`Case 1:20-cv-01429-UNA Document 1-1 Filed 10/23/20 Page 4 of 299 PageID #: 140
`
`•
`
`EFiled: Sep 21 2020 12:58P
`
`~ ~l~
`Transacfiion I® 65948806
`
`
`Case No. N20C-09-097 AN1L,~;
`
`•~ ~ _
`
`~.
`
`IN THE SUPERIOR COURT OF THE STATE OF DELAWARE
`
`C.A. No. N20C-09-097-
`AML CCLD
`
`TRIAL BY JURY OF 12
`DEMANDED
`
`STATE OF DELAWARE, ex rel.
`KATHLEEN JENNINGS,
`Attorney General of the State of
`Delaware,
`
`Plaintiff,
`
`0
`
`BP AMERICA INC., BP P.L.C.,
`CHEVRON CORPORATION,
`CHEVRON U.S.A. INC.,
`CONOCOPHILLIPS, CONOCOPHILLIPS
`COMPANY, PHILLIPS 66, PHILLIPS 66
`COMPANY, EXXON MOBIL .
`CORPORATION, EXXONMOBIL OIL
`CORPORATION, XTO ENERGY INC.,
`HESS CORPORATION, MARATHON
`OIL CORPORATION, MARATHON OIL
`COMPANY, MARATHON PETROLEUM
`CORPORATION, MARATHON
`PETROLEUM COMPANY LP,
`SPEEDWAY LLC, MURPHY OIL
`CORPORATION, MURPHY USA INC.,
`ROYAL DUTCH SHELL PLC, SHELL
`OIL COMPANY, CITGO PETROLEUM
`CORPORATION, TOTAL S.A., TOTAL
`SPECIALTIES USA INC., OCCIDENTAL
`PETROLEUM CORPORATION, DEVON
`ENERGY CORPORATION, APACHE
`CORPORATION, CNX RESOURCES
`CORPORATION, CONSOL ENERGY
`INC., OVINTIV, INC., and AMERICAN
`PETROLEUM INSTITUTE,
`
`

`

`Case 1:20-cv-01429-UNA Document 1-1 Filed 10/23/20 Page 5 of 299 PageID #: 141
`
`,~~'".~`~~'`, :
`EFiled: Sep 21 2020 12:58P ,~~.~T.~
`t; w ~
`Transaction ID 65948806
`Case No. N20C-09-097 AiVIL
`IN THE SUPERIOR COURT OF TIIE STATE OF DELAWARE
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`C.A. No. N20C-09-097-
`AML CCLD
`
`TRIAL BY JURY OF 12
`DEMANDED
`
`STATE OF DELAWARE, ex Nel.
`KATHLEEN JENNINGS,
`Attorney General of the State of
`Delaware,
`
`Plaintiff,
`
`V.
`
`BP AMERICA INC., BP P.L.C.,
`CHEVRON CORPORATION,
`CHEVRON U.S.A. INC.,
`CONOCOPHILLIPS, CONOCOPHILLIPS
`COMPANY, PHILLIPS 66, PHILLIPS 66
`COMPANY, EXXON MOBIL
`CORPORATION, EXXONMOBIL OIL
`CORPORATION, XTO ENERGY INC.,
`HESS CORPORATION, MARATHON
`OIL CORPORATION, MARATHON OIL
`COMPANY, MARATHON PETROLEUM
`CORPORATION, MARATHON
`PETROLEUM COMPANY LP,
`SPEEDWAY LLC, MURPHY OIL
`CORPORATION,IVIURPHY USA INC.,
`ROYAL DUTCH SHELL PLC, SHELL
`OIL COMPANY, CITGO PETROLEUM
`CORPORATION, TOTAL S.A., TOTAL
`SPECIALTIES USA INC., OCCIDENTAL
`PETROLEUM CORPORATION, DEVON
`ENERGY CORPORATION, APACHE
`CORPORATION, CNX RESOURCES
`CORPORATION, CONSOL ENERGY
`INC., OVINTIV, INC., and AMERICAN
`PETROLEUM INSTITUTE,
`
`

`

`Case 1:20-cv-01429-UNA Document 1-1 Filed 10/23/20 Page 6 of 299 PageID #: 142
`
`ALIAS SUMMONS
`
`THE STATE OF DELAWARE,
`BRANDYWINE PROCESS SERVERS:
`YOU ARE COMMANDED:
`
`To Summon CHEVRON CORPORATION ("Defendant") so that, within
`
`20 days after service hereof upon Defendant, exclusive of the day of service,
`
`Defendant shall serve upon Christian D. Wright, Esquire, Plaintifft s attorney, whose
`
`address is Delaware Attorney General, Delaware Department of Justice, 820 N.
`
`French Street, Wilmington, DE 19801 an answer to the complaint (and, if an
`
`affidavit of demand has been filed, an affidavit of defense).
`
`To serve upon Defendant a copy hereof and of the complaint (and of the
`
`affidavit of demand if any has been filed by Plaintiff).
`
`Dated: pCT . 5
`
`, 2020
`
`N
`
`

`

`Case 1:20-cv-01429-UNA Document 1-1 Filed 10/23/20 Page 7 of 299 PageID #: 143
`
`TO THE ABOVE NAMED DEI+'ENDANT:
`
`In case of your failure, within 20 days after service hereof upon you, exclusive
`
`of the day of service, to serve on Plaintiff s attorney named above an answer to the
`
`complaint (and, if an affidavit of demand has been filed, an affidavit of defense),
`
`judgment by default will be rendered against you for the relief demanded in the
`
`Complaint (or in the affidavit of demand, if any).
`
`Dated:
`
`pCT • G , 2020
`
`3
`
`

`

`Case 1:20-cv-01429-UNA Document 1-1 Filed 10/23/20 Page 8 of 299 PageID #: 144
`
`EFiled: Sep 10 2020 11:31AP~` ~--3~
`Transaction I® 65917326
`Case No. N20C-09-097 AML
`IN THE SUPERIOR COURT OF THE STATE OF DELAWARE
`
`-~-
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`C.A. No.
`CCLD
`
`TRIAL BY JURY OF 12
`DEMANDED
`
`COMPLAINT
`
`STATE OF DELAWARE, ex rel.
`KATHLEEN JENNINGS, Attorney
`General of the State of Delaware,
`
`Plaintiff,
`
`0
`
`BP AMERICA INC., BP P.L.C.,
`CHEVRON CORPORATION,
`CHEVRON U.S.A. INC.,
`CONOCOPHILLIPS, CONOCOPHILLIPS
`COMPANY, PHILLIPS 66, PHILLIPS 66
`COMPANY, EXXON MOBIL
`CORPORATION, EXXONMOBIL OIL
`CORPORATION, XTO ENERGY INC.,
`HESS CORPORATION, MARATHON
`OIL CORPORATION, MARATHON OIL
`COMPANY, MARATHON PETROLEUM
`CORPORATION, MARATHON
`PETROLEUM COMPANY LP,
`SPEEDWAY LLC, MURPHY OIL
`CORPORATION, MURPHY USA INC.,
`ROYAL DUTCH SHELL PLC, SHELL
`OIL COMPANY, CITGO PETROLEUM
`CORPORATION, TOTAL S.A., TOTAL
`SPECIALTIES USA INC., OCCIDENTAL
`PETROLEUM CORPORATION, DEVON
`ENERGY CORPORATION, APACHE
`CORPORATION, CNX RESOURCES
`CORPORATION, CONSOL ENERGY
`INC., OVINTIV, INC., and AMERICAN
`PETROLEUM INSTITUTE,
`
`

`

`Case 1:20-cv-01429-UNA Document 1-1 Filed 10/23/20 Page 9 of 299 PageID #: 145
`
`TABLE OF CONTENTS
`
`I.
`
`II.
`
`INTRODUCTION .........................................................................................1
`
`PARTIES ........................................................................................................9
`
`A. Plaintiff ............................................................................................................9
`
`B. Defendants .....................................................................................................10
`
`C. Relevant Non-Parties: Defendants' Agents and Front Groups .....................58
`
`III.
`
`JURISDICTION ..........................................................................................61
`
`IV. FACTUAL BACKGROUND ......................................................................64
`
`A. Defendants Are Responsible for Causing and Accelerating Climate
`Change. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .... . . . . . . . .. . .. . .. . . . . . .. . . . . . .. .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . I . . . . . . . . .. . .. . .. . . . . . . . . . . 64
`B. Defendants Went to Great Lengths to Understand, and Either Knew or
`Should Have Known About, the Dangers Associated with Their
`FossilFuel Products .......................................................................................70
`
`C. Defendants Did Not Disclose Known Harms Associated with the
`Extraction, Promotion, and Consumption of Their Fossil Fuel
`Products, and Instead Affirmatively Acted to Obscure Those Harms
`and Engaged in a Campaign to Deceptively Protect and Expand
`the Use of their Fossil Fuel Products ...........................................................104
`
`D. In Contrast to Their Public Statements, Defendants' Internal Actions
`Demonstrate Their Awareness of and Intent to Profit from the
`Unabated Use of Fossil Fuel Products .........................................................132
`
`E. Defendants' Actions Have Exacerbated the Costs of Adapting to
`and Mitigating the Adverse Impacts of the Climate Crisis . ........................135
`
`F. Defendants Continue to Mislead About the Impact of Their Fossil Fuel
`Products on Climate Change Through Greenwashing Campaigns
`and Other Misleading Advertisements in Delaware and Elsewhere. ..........149
`
`i. Exxon's Misleading and Deceptive Greenwashing Campaigns .......... 156
`
`ii. Shell's Misleading and Deceptive Greenwashing Campaigns ............159
`
`

`

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`
`iii. BP's Misleading and Deceptive Greenwashing Campaigns ...............161
`
`iv. Chevron's Misleading and Deceptive Greenwashing
`Campaigns . . . .. . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .164
`
`v. Marathon's Misleading and Deceptive Greenwashing
`Camp ai gns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .16 8
`
`vi. ConocoPhillips's Misleading and Deceptive Greenwashing
`Campaigns............................................................................................169
`
`vii. API's Misleading and Deceptive Greenwashing Campaigns ..............170
`
`G. Defendants Also Made Misleading Claims About Specific "Green" or
`"Greener" Fossil Fuel Products . ..................................................................172
`
`H. Defendants Intended for Consumers to Rely on their Concealments
`and Omissions Regarding the Dangers of Their Fossil
`FuelProducts . ..............................................................................................177
`
`Defendants' Deceit Only Recently Became Discoverable, and Their
`MisconductIs Ongoing . ..............................................................................179
`
`J. The State Has Suffered, Is Suffering, and Will Suffer Injuries from
`Defendants' Wrongful Conduct .......... : ......................................................... 183
`
`V. CAUSES OF ACTION ..............................................................................198
`
`FIRST CAUSE OF ACTION
`(Negligent Failure to Warn)
`(Against All Fossil Fuel Defendants) ..........................................................198
`
`SECOND CAUSE OF ACTION
`(Trespass)
`(Against All Fossil Fuel Defendants) ..........................................................203
`
`THIRD CAUSE OF ACTION
`(Nuisance)
`(Against All Fossil Fuel Defendants) ..........................................................204
`
`ii
`
`

`

`Case 1:20-cv-01429-UNA Document 1-1 Filed 10/23/20 Page 11 of 299 PageID #: 147
`
`FOURTH CAUSE OF ACTION
`(Delaware Consumer Fraud Act)
`(Against American Petroleum Institute, BP America Inc., BP plc, Chevron
`Corporation, Chevron U.S.A. Inc., Exxon Mobil Corporation, ExxonMobil
`Oil Corporation, XTO Energy, Inc., Hess Corporation, Royal Dutch Shell
`PLC, Shell Oil Company, Citgo Petroleum Corporation, CNX Resources
`Corporation, Marathon Oil Company, Marathon Petroleum Corporation,
`Marathon Oil Corporation, Marathon Petroleum Company LP, and
`SpeedwayLLC) ...........................................................................................209
`
`VI. PRAYER FOR RELIEF ...........................................................................217
`
`VII. REQUEST FOR JURY TRIAL ...............................................................217
`
`iii
`
`

`

`Case 1:20-cv-01429-UNA Document 1-1 Filed 10/23/20 Page 12 of 299 PageID #: 148
`
`I. INTRODUCTION
`
`.1.
`
`Defendants, major corporate members of the fossil fuel industry, have
`
`known for nearly half a century that unrestricted production and use of fossil fi,iel
`
`products create greenhouse gas pollution that warms the planet and changes our
`
`climate. Climate change will have and has already had devastating economic and
`
`public health impacts across the State of Delaware, and will disproportionately
`
`impact people of color and people living in poverty. Defendants have known for
`
`decades that climate change impacts could be catastrophic, and that only a narrow
`
`window existed to take action before the consequences would be irreversible. They
`
`have nevertheless engaged in a coordinated, multi-front effort to conceal and deny
`
`their own knowledge of those threats, to discredit the growing body of publicly
`
`available scientific evidence, and to persistently create doubt in the minds of
`
`customers, consumers, regulators, the media, journalists, teachers, and the public
`
`about the reality and consequences of the impacts oftheir fossil fuel products. This
`
`campaign was intended to, and did, target and influence the public and consumers,
`
`including in Delaware.
`
`2. At the same time, Defendants have promoted and profited from a
`
`massive increase in the extraction, production, and consumption of oil, coal, and
`
`natural gas, which has in turn caused an enormous, foreseeable, and avoidable
`
`increase in global greenhouse gas pollution and a concomitant increase in the
`
`1
`
`

`

`Case 1:20-cv-01429-UNA Document 1-1 Filed 10/23/20 Page 13 of 299 PageID #: 149
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`concentration of greenhouse gases, I particularly carbon dioxide ("COz") and
`
`methane, in the Earth's atmosphere. Those disruptions of the Earth's otherwise
`
`balanced carbon cycle have substantially contributed to a wide range of dire climate-
`
`related effects, including, but not limited to, global atmospheric and ocean warming,
`
`ocean acidification, melting polar ice caps and glaciers, more extreme and volatile
`
`weather, drought, and sea level rise.
`
`3.
`
`Plaintiff, the State of Delaware,2 its departments and agencies, along
`
`with the State's residents, infrastructure, public and private lands, and natural
`
`resources, suffer the consequences of Defendants' campaign of deception.
`
`4. Defendants are extractors, producers, refiners, manufacturers,
`
`distributors, promoters, marketers, and/or sellers of fossil fuel products, each of
`
`which contributed to deceiving the public and consumers, in and outside of
`
`Delaware, about the role of their products in causing the global climate crisis.
`
`Decades of scientific research has shown that pollution from Defendants' fossil fuel
`
`products plays a direct and substantial role in the unprecedented rise in emissions of
`
`1 As used in this Complaint, the term "greenhouse gases" refers collectively to
`carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide. Where a cited source refers to a specific
`gas or gases, or when a process relates only to a specific gas or gases, this Complaint
`refers to each gas by name.
`Z In this Complaint, the terms "State" and "Plaintiff' refer to the State of Delaware,
`unless otherwise stated. The word "Delaware" refers to the area falling within
`Plaintiff's geographic boundaries, excluding federal land, unless otherwise stated.
`2
`
`

`

`Case 1:20-cv-01429-UNA Document 1-1 Filed 10/23/20 Page 14 of 299 PageID #: 150
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`greenhouse gas pollution and increased atmospheric CO2 concentrations that have
`
`occurred since the mid-20t' century. This dramatic increase in atmospheric COZ and
`
`other greenhouse gases is the main driver of the gravely dangerous changes
`
`occurring to the global climate.
`
`5. Anthropogenic greenhouse gas pollution, primarily in the form of COZ,
`
`is far and away the dominant cause of global warming,3 resulting in severe impacts
`
`including, but not limited to: sea level rise, disruption to the hydrologic cycle, more
`
`frequent and intense extreme precipitation events and associated flooding, more
`
`frequent and intense heatwaves, more frequent and intense droughts, and associated
`
`consequences of those physical and environmental changes. These impacts, the
`
`consequences of Defendants' actions, disproportionately impact communities of
`
`color and low-income communities in Delaware. The primary cause of the climate
`
`crisis is the combustion of coal, oil, and natural gas,4 referred to collectively in this
`
`Complaint as "fossil fuel products."
`
`6.
`
`The rate at which Defendants have extracted and sold fossil fuel
`
`products has exploded since the Second World War, as have emissions from those
`
`3 See INTERGOVERNMENTAL PANEL ON CLIMATE CHANGE ("IPCC"), CLIMATE
`CHANGE 2014 SYNTHESIS REPORT (2014),
`https://www.ipcc.ch/site/assets/uploads/2018/02/SYR_A1Z5 FINAL_full.pdf.
`4 See Pierre Friedlingstein et al., Global Carbon Budget 2019, 11 EARTH SYST. SCI.
`DATA 1783 (2019), https://www.earth-syst-sci-data.net/11/1783/2019.
`3
`
`

`

`Case 1:20-cv-01429-UNA Document 1-1 Filed 10/23/20 Page 15 of 299 PageID #: 151
`
`products. The substantial majority of all anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions
`
`in history have occurred since the 1950s, a period known as the "Great
`
`Acceleration."5 About three-quarters of all industrial CO2 emissions in history have
`
`occurred since the 1960s,6 and more than half have occurred since the late 1980s.'
`
`The annual rate of CO2 emissions from extraction, production, and consumption of
`
`fossil fuels has increased substantially since 1990.1
`
`7. Defendants have known for more than 50 years that greenhouse gas
`
`pollution from their fossil fuel products would have a significant adverse impacts on
`
`the Earth's climate and sea levels. Defendants' awareness of the negative impacts
`
`of their actions corresponds almost exactly with the Great Acceleration, and with
`
`skyrocketing greenhouse gas emissions. With that knowledge, Defendants took
`
`steps to protect their own assets fTom those threats through immense internal
`
`investment in research, infrastructure improvements, and plans to exploit new
`
`opportunities in a warming world.
`
`5 Will Steffen et al., The Trajectory of the Anthropocene: The Great Acceleration,
`2 THE ANTHROPOCENE REVIEW 81, 81 (2015).
`6 R.J. Andres et al., A Synthesis of Carbon Dioxide Emissions from Fossil-Fuel
`Combustion, 9 BIOGEOSCIENCES 1845, 1851 (2012).
`' Id.
`8 Friedlingstein et al., supYa note 4, at 630.
`4
`
`

`

`Case 1:20-cv-01429-UNA Document 1-1 Filed 10/23/20 Page 16 of 299 PageID #: 152
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`8.
`
`Instead of warning of those known consequences following from the
`
`intended and foreseeable use of their products and working to minimize the damage
`
`associated with the use and combustion of such products, Defendants concealed the
`
`dangers, promoted false and misleading information, sought to undermine public
`
`support for greenhouse gas regulation, and engaged in massive campaigns . to
`
`promote the ever-increasing use of their products at ever-greater volumes. These
`
`campaigns were intended to and did target the people of Delaware. All Defendarits'
`
`actions in concealing the dangers of, promoting false and misleading information
`
`about, and engaging in massive campaigns to promote increasing use of their fossil
`
`fuel products, have contributed substantially to the buildup of CO2 in the atmosphere
`
`that drives global warming and its physical, ' environmental, and
`
`socioeconomic consequences, including those affecting the State.
`
`9. Defendants are directly responsible for the substantial increase in all
`
`COZ emissions between 1965 and the present. Defendants individually and
`
`collectively played leadership roles in denialist campaigns to misinform and confuse
`
`consumers and the public and obscure the role of Defendants' products in causing
`
`global warming and its associated impacts. But for such campaigns, climate crisis
`
`impacts in Delaware would have been substantially mitigated or eliminated
`
`altogether. Accordingly, Defendants are directly responsible for a substantial
`
`portion of the climate crisis-related impacts in Delaware.
`
`E
`
`

`

`Case 1:20-cv-01429-UNA Document 1-1 Filed 10/23/20 Page 17 of 299 PageID #: 153
`
`10. As a direct and proximate consequence of Defendants' wrongful
`
`conduct described in this Complaint, the environment in and around Delaware is
`
`changing, with devastating adverse impacts on the State and its residents,
`
`particularly communities of color and _low-income communities. Virtually all of
`
`Delaware's eastern border is coastal or tidal, and Delaware is one of the lowest-lying
`
`states in the nation, with a mean elevation of only approximately 60 feet above sea
`
`level. In addition, the beach communities and coastal economy serve as an essential
`
`pillar of the State's economy. As a result, Delaware is very vulnerable to the impacts
`
`of sea level rise and other climate change impacts. For instance, the average sea
`
`level has already risen and will continue to rise substantially along Delaware's coast,
`
`causing flooding, inundation, saltwater intrusion, erosion, tidal wetland losses, and
`
`beach loss; extreme weather, including coastal storms, drought, heatwaves, and other
`
`extreme events will become more frequent, longer-lasting and more severe; and the
`
`cascading social, economic, and other consequences of those and myriad other
`
`envirorimental changes—all due to anthropogenic global warming—will increase in
`
`Delaware.
`
`11. As a direct result of those and other climate crisis-caused environmental
`
`changes, the State has suffered and will continue to suffer severe injuries, including,
`
`but not limited to: inundation and loss of State property; inundation of private
`
`property and businesses with associated loss of tax revenue; injury or destruction of
`
`C~
`
`

`

`Case 1:20-cv-01429-UNA Document 1-1 Filed 10/23/20 Page 18 of 299 PageID #: 154
`
`State-owned or -operated facilities critical for operations, utility services, and risk
`
`management, as well as other assets essential to community health, safety, and well-
`
`being; increased costs of maintaining public infrastructure; 'increased costs of
`
`providing government services; increased health care and public health costs;
`
`increased planning and preparation costs for community adaptation and resiliency to
`
`the effects of the climate crisis; displacement, disruption and/or loss of coastal
`
`communities, with associated harm to the State; decreased tax revenue due to
`
`impacts on Delaware's tourism- and ocean-based economy; and others.9
`
`12. Defendants' individual and collective conduct, including, but not
`
`limited to, their introduction of fossil fuel products into the stream of commerce
`
`while knowing but failing to warn of the threats posed to the world's climate; their
`
`wrongful promotion of their fossil fuel products and concealment of known hazards
`
`associated with the use of those products; their public deception campaigns designed
`
`9 See, e.g., DIv. OF ENERGY AND CLIMATE, DELAWARE DEPT. OF NATURAL
`RESOURCES AND ENVIRONMENTAL CONTROL, ADAPTING TO SEA LEVEL RISE (2014),
`available at https://dnrec.alpha.delaware.gov/coastal-programs/planning-
`training/adapting-to-sea-level-rise; DIv. OF ENERGY AND CLIMATE, DELAWARE DEPT.
`OF NATURAL RESOURCES AND ENVIRONMENTAL CONTROL, CLIMATE CHANGE
`IMPACT AssESSMENT (2014) (hereinafter "DCCIA") , available at
`http://www.dnrec.delaware.gov/energy/Documents/Climate%20Change%202013 -
`2014/DCCIA%20interior full_dated.pdf; DELAWARE EMERGENCY MGMT. AGENCY,
`ALL-HAZARD MITIGATION PLAN (Aug. 2018) , available at
`https://dema.delaware.gov/contentFolder/pdfslHazardMitigationPlan.pdf.
`7
`
`

`

`Case 1:20-cv-01429-UNA Document 1-1 Filed 10/23/20 Page 19 of 299 PageID #: 155
`
`to obscure the connection between their products and global warming and the
`
`environmental, physical, social, and economic consequences flowing from it; and
`
`their failure to pursue less hazardous alternatives, actually and proximately caused
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`the State's injuries. In other words, Defendants' concealment and misrepresentation
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`of their products' known dangers—and simultaneous promotion of their
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`unrestrained use--lrove consumption, and thus greenhouse gas pollution, and thus
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`the climate crisis.
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`13. . Accordingly, the State brings this action against Defendants for
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`negligent failure to warn, trespass, common law nuisance, and violations of the
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`Delaware Consumer Fraud Act.
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`14. The State hereby disclaims injuries arising on federal property and
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`those that arose from Defendants' provision of fossil fuel products to the federal
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`government, and seeks no recovery or relief attributable to such injuries.
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`15. The State seeks to ensure that the parties who have profited from
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`externalizirig the consequences and costs of dealing with global warming and its
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`physical, environmental, social, and economic consequences, bear the costs of those
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`impacts on Delaware, rather than the State, taxpayers, residents, or broader segments
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`of the public.
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`:
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`Case 1:20-cv-01429-UNA Document 1-1 Filed 10/23/20 Page 20 of 299 PageID #: 156
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`II. PARTIES
`
`A.
`
`Plaintiff
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`16. Plaintiff, State of Delaware, ex rel. Kathleen Jennings, Attorney
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`General of the State of Delaware, brings this action in the State's capacity as
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`sovereign, in its proprietary capacity, in its paYens patriae capacity as an exercise of
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`its authority to protect public trust resources, and as an exercise of its police power,
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`which includes, but is not limited to, its power to prevent injuries to and pollution of
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`the State's property and waters, to prevent and abate nuisances, and to prevent and
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`abate hazards to public health, safety, welfare, and the environment.
`
`17. The Attorney General is the chief law officer of the State, and is
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`statutorily authorized to initiate and maintain this action pursuant to 29 Del. C.
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`§§ 2504 and 2522 and 6 Del. C. § 2522.
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`18. The State consists of several offices and departments, each with
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`purview over the State's operations, facilities, property, and/or programs that have
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`been injured by Defendants' conduct as alleged herein and consequent global
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`warming-related impacts.
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`19. Delaware is the state with the lowest mean elevation in the nation, with
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`381 miles of shoreline, which presents a significant level of risk from climate
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`change. Between eight percent and eleven percent of its land area, including nearly
`
`all its tidal wetlands, could be inundated by a sea level rise of 0.5 to 1.5 meters,
`
`6
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`Case 1:20-cv-01429-UNA Document 1-1 Filed 10/23/20 Page 21 of 299 PageID #: 157
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`respectively.10 Additionally, average annual precipitation is projected to increase by
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`ten percent in Delaware by the end of the century.11
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`B. Defendants
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`20. When reference in this Complaint is made to an act or omission of
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`Defendants, unless specifically attributed or otherwise stated, such references should
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`be interpreted to mean that the officers, directors, agents, employees, or
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`representatives of Defendants committed or authorized such an act or omission, or
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`failed to adequately supervise or properly control or direct their employees while
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`engaged in the management, direction, operation or control of the affairs of
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`Defendants, and did so while acting within the scope of their employment or agency.
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`21. BP Entities: BP P.L.C., BP America Inc.
`
`a.
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`Defendant BP P.L.C. is a multinational, vertically integrated
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`energy and petrochemical public limited company, registered in England and Wales
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`with its principal place of business in London, England. BP P.L.C. consists of three
`
`10 COASTAL PROGRAMS DIVISION, DELAWARE DEPT. OF NATURAL RESOURCES AND
`ENVIRONMENTAL CONTROL, PREPARING FOR TOMORROW' S HIGH TIDE: SEA LEVEL
`RISE VULNERABILITY ASSESSMENT FOR THE STATE OF DELAWARE ix (2012)
`(hereinafter "DNREC, SEA LEVEL RISE VULNERABILITY ASSESSMENT"), available
`at
`http://www. dnrec. delaware. gov/co astal/Do cuments/S eaLevelRise/Ass esmentForW
`eb.pdf.
`11 DCCIA at 4-4.
`
`10
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`

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`Case 1:20-cv-01429-UNA Document 1-1 Filed 10/23/20 Page 22 of 299 PageID #: 158
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`main operating segments: (1) exploration and production, (2) refining and
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`marketing, and (3) gas power and renewables. BP P.L.C. is the ultimate parent
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`company of numerous subsidiaries, referred to collectively as the "BP Group,"
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`which explore for and extract oil and gas worldwide; refine oil into fossil fuel
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`products such as gasoline; and market and sell oil, fuel, other refined petroleum
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`products, and natural gas worldwide. BP P.L.C.'s subsidiaries explore for oil and
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`natural gas under a wide range of licensing, joint arrangement, and other contractual
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`agreements.
`
`b.
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`BP P.L.C. controls and has controlled companywide decisions
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`about the quantity and extent of fossil fuel production and sales, including those of
`
`its subsidiaries. BP P.L.C. is the ultimate decisionmaker on fundamental decisions
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`about the BP Group's core business, i.e., the level of companywide fossil fuels to
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`produce, including production among BP P.L.C.'s subsidiaries. For instance, BP
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`P.L.C. reported that in 2016-17 it brought online thirteen major exploration and
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`production projects. These contributed to a twelve percent increase in the BP
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`Group's overall fossil fuel product production. These projects were carried out by
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`BP P.L.C.'s subsidiaries. Based on these projects, BP P.L.C. expects the BP Group
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`to deliver to customers 900,000 barrels of new product per day by 2021. BP P.L.C.
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`further reported that in 2017 it sanctioned three new exploration projects in Trinidad,
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`India, and the Gulf of Mexico.
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`11
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`

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`Case 1:20-cv-01429-UNA Document 1-1 Filed 10/23/20 Page 23 of 299 PageID #: 159
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`C.
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`BP P.L.C. controls and has controlled companywide decisions,
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`including those of its subsidiaries, related to marketing, advertising, climate change
`
`and greenhouse gas emissions firom its fossil fuel products, and communications
`
`strategies concerning climate change and the link between fossil fuel use and
`
`climate-related impacts on the environment and communities. BP P.L.C. makes
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`fossil fuel production decisions for the entire BP Group based on factors including
`
`climate change. BP P.L.C.'s Board of Directors is the highest decision-making body
`
`within the company, with direct responsibility for the BP Group's climate change
`
`policy. BP P.L.C.'s chief executive is responsible for maintaining the BP Group's
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`system of internal control that governs the BP Group's business conduct. BP
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`P.L.C.'s senior leadership directly oversees a carbon steering group, which manages
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`climate-related matters and consists of two committees overseen directly by the
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`board that focus on climate-related investments.
`
`d.
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`Defendant BP America Inc. is a wholly owned subsidiary of BP
`
`P.L.C. that acts on BP P.L.C.'s behalf and subject to BP P.L.C.'s control. BP
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`America Inc. is a vertically integrated energy and petrochemical company
`
`incorporated in the state of Delaware with its headquarters and principal place of
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`business in Houston, Texas. BP America Inc., consists of numerous divisions and
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`affiliates in all aspects of the fossil fuel industry, including exploration for and
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`production of crude oil and natural gas; manufacture of petroleum products; and
`
`12
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`

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`Case 1:20-cv-01429-UNA Document 1-1 Filed 10/23/20 Page 24 of 299 PageID #: 160
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`transportation, marketing, and sale of crude oil, natural gas, and petroleum products.
`
`BP America Inc. was formerly known as, did or does business as, and/or is the
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`successor in liability to Amoco Corporation, Amoco Oil Company, ARCO Products
`
`Company, Atlantic Richfield Delaware Corporation, Atlantic Richfield Company (a
`
`Delaware Corporation), BP Exploration & Oil, Inc., BP Products NNorth America
`
`Inc., BP Amoco Corporation, BP Amoco Plc, BP Oil, Inc., BP Oil Company, Sohio
`
`Oil Company, Standard Oil of Ohio (SOHIO), Standard Oil (Indiana), and The
`
`Atlantic Richfield Company (a Pennsylvania Corporation) and its division, the Arco
`
`Chemical Company.
`
`e.
`
`Defendants BP P.L.C. and BP America, Inc., together with their
`
`predecessors, successors, parents, subsidiaries, affi