Exxon sued in US for allegedly misleading investors on climate risk

A group of US investors filed a class action lawsuit against Exxon Mobil Corporation on 8 November 2016, alleging the company made "false and misleading statements" about climate change impacts to artificially inflate its value. The claim follows a 13% drop in stock price and reports that Exxon may need to write down nearly 20% of its oil and gas assets. The document warns that other oil majors, including Chevron, Oxy, ConocoPhilipps, Total, BP, and Shell, also show poor disclosure quality according to InfluenceMap, and urges investors to engage with companies to ensure robust disclosure of energy transition risks.

• On 8 November 2016, US investors initiated a class action lawsuit against Exxon Mobil Corporation for damages following a 13% decline in the company's stock price during 2016.
• Exxon is accused of overstating the value of its oil reserves by claiming they would not become stranded, despite factors such as the Paris Agreement, low oil prices, and competition from renewables.
• Financial reports from late October indicate that Exxon may be required to write down nearly 20% of its oil and gas assets because they are no longer profitable to produce at current prices.
• An InfluenceMap analysis of ten oil and gas majors suggests widespread inadequate disclosure of climate risks; Chevron, Oxy, and ConocoPhilipps received an 'E' grade, while Total, BP, and Shell received 'D-'.

APA

ClientEarth (2016). Exxon sued in US for allegedly misleading investors on climate risk. https://www.clientearth.org/media/2k1asmfu/clientearth-investor-briefing-exxon-sued-in-us-for-allegedly-misleading-investors-on-climate-risk-ce-en-2.pdf

Chicago

ClientEarth. Exxon sued in US for allegedly misleading investors on climate risk. 2016. https://www.clientearth.org/media/2k1asmfu/clientearth-investor-briefing-exxon-sued-in-us-for-allegedly-misleading-investors-on-climate-risk-ce-en-2.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=ClientEarth |title=Exxon sued in US for allegedly misleading investors on climate risk |date=14 November 2016 |url=https://www.clientearth.org/media/2k1asmfu/clientearth-investor-briefing-exxon-sued-in-us-for-allegedly-misleading-investors-on-climate-risk-ce-en-2.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{clientearth2016exxon, author = {{ClientEarth}}, title = {{Exxon sued in US for allegedly misleading investors on climate risk}}, institution = {ClientEarth}, year = {2016}, month = nov, url = {https://www.clientearth.org/media/2k1asmfu/clientearth-investor-briefing-exxon-sued-in-us-for-allegedly-misleading-investors-on-climate-risk-ce-en-2.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }