2018-10-18nbcnews.com

The suit was filed in 2015 by a group of young people, ranging in age from 10 to 21, who said the federal government has failed to stop climate change by promoting the use of fossil fuels for more than 50 years. They claim that policy violated their constitutional right to "a climate system capable of sustaining human life."

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They seek sharp reductions in carbon dioxide emissions and a national plan for restoring the earth's energy balance. Despite repeated efforts by the federal government -- under both the Obama and Trump administrations -- to get the lawsuit tossed out, lower courts have allowed it to go forward. It is now set for 50 days of what the plaintiffs call the trial of the century, beginning October 29 in Oregon.

Solicitor General Noel Francisco said by allowing the case to proceed to trial, the judge overseeing the case wrongly found in favor of the young people's claim that they have a right to certain climate conditions.

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In July, the Supreme Court declined a similar request from the government to put the case on hold but called the breadth of the lawsuit's claims "striking" and said it's debatable whether the courts have the authority to entertain them.



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