On Tuesday, the Supreme Court declined to revive a lawsuit brought by 21 youth activists who argue that the federal government’s energy policies violate their constitutional rights by exacerbating climate change.

The Court’s denial of the petition in Juliana v. United States represents a significant setback for the youth-led climate lawsuit. Filed in 2015 by the nonprofit law firm Our Children’s Trust, the case has faced numerous challenges in lower courts. The group contended that the 9th Circuit wrongly directed an Oregon federal judge to dismiss the case and sought the Supreme Court’s intervention to reinstate their claim, the Washington Examiner

Washington Examine reported.After years of litigation, the San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ordered the dismissal of the case in 2020. In May, a three-judge panel from the 9th Circuit upheld the dismissal, effectively halting the plaintiffs’ efforts to continue the case, the outlet added.

The Our Children’s Trust (OCT) website states that its mission is to secure “legal rights to a safe climate” for younger generations. Despite the Supreme Court’s decision, Julia Olson, the plaintiffs’ attorney, stressed that the fundamental issue remains unresolved.