Previous Cases and Legal Actions in Alaska

For a timeline of current legal actions in Alaska, click here.

July 11, 2011: Case Filed
Six young Alaskans and their guardians filed an amended complaint - Kanuk v. State of Alaska - against the State of Alaska’s Department of Natural Resources alleging that the State’s failure to address climate change violated the Public Trust Doctrine.

August 11, 2011: Motion to Dismiss
The State of Alaska filed a motion to dismiss the case.

February 15, 2012: Hearing
Attorneys for the plaintiffs argued against the state’s motion to dismiss. 

March 2012: Motion to Dismiss Granted
Superior Court Judge Sen. K. Tan granted the government’s motion to dismiss. 

November 16, 2012: Appeal Filed
Attorneys for the plaintiffs filed the opening brief of their appeal to the Alaska Supreme Court.

October 3, 2013: Oral Arguments
Oral arguments for Kanuk v. State of Alaska were heard by the Alaska Supreme Court in Barrow, AK.

September 12, 2014: Ruling Issued
The Alaska Supreme Court issued a ruling partially in the favor of the youth plaintiffs and their guardians. Recognizing that climate change was already harming the plaintiffs, the Court ruled that the youth had standing to bring climate claims against the State of Alaska and wrote that the youth “make a good case. . . that the atmosphere is an asset of the public trust, with the State as trustee and the public as beneficiary.” The Court also agreed with the youth that the State of Alaska has obligations to combat climate change, calling the science of anthropogenic climate change “compelling,” and citing numerous climate science studies and reports. The Court stated that the atmosphere and the ecosystems it protects are subject to constitutional protections even without the Court’s legal declaration that the atmosphere is subject to the public trust.

However, the Court ultimately dismissed the youth’s claims, finding that the case presented a political question and was thus not something for the court to consider “in the first instance” because the youth plaintiffs only challenged the State’s failure to address climate change, and had not challenged an “initial policy determination” by the political branches.

September 25, 2014: Petition for Rehearing Filed
Attorneys for the plaintiffs filed a Motion for Rehearing with the Alaska Supreme Court.

October 28, 2014: Petition for Rehearing Denied
The Alaska Supreme Court denied the petition for rehearing for Kanuk v. State of Alaska.

For a timeline of current legal actions in Alaska, click here.