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Firm behind climate lawsuits faces DOJ referral after court finds ‘misconduct bordering on criminal’
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A federal judge’s extraordinary decision to refer Hagens Berman to the Department of Justice for possible unlawful conduct escalated to an appeals court this week, marking one of the toughest challenges yet for a high-profile law firm known, in part, for its aggressive climate litigation.
The referral came as part of a lawsuit that Hagens Berman brought related to a separate topic, alleged drug-related injuries, and involved Judge Paul Diamond taking the rare step of asking the DOJ to review whether Hagens Berman acted unlawfully.
Diamond noted in an order on Dec. 2 that a court-appointed lawyer, known as a special master, found Hagens Berman engaged in a yearslong effort to bring “fraudulent” complaints in the case in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. Hagens Berman also obstructed discovery and “doctored evidence,” the special master found. The order noted that the firm’s apparent “misconduct bordering on criminal” warranted the DOJ’s involvement.
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The Department of Justice headquarters on Feb. 19, 2020, in Washington, D.C. (Drew Angerer)
Hagens Berman has aggressively pushed back on the allegations and turned to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 3rd Circuit for relief. The firm accused the judge of bias, noting it had recently sought Diamond’s recusal from the case and claiming the judge could be retaliating.
“To rebut the charge in the court below would risk fomenting even greater ire of the district judge—ire that would be calamitous for petitioners’ clients,” Hagens Berman lawyers wrote. “To remain silent is to permit a baseless accusation leveled by an Article III judge no less, to hang like a dark, ignominious cloud over petitioners’ professional reputation.”
The clash comes as Hagens Berman continues positioning itself as a go-to firm for high-risk litigation, including environmental cases, even as its track record in that arena shows mixed results.
Last month, the firm filed a class-action lawsuit on behalf of Washington state homeowners against ExxonMobil, Shell, Chevron and other fossil fuel companies. The suit alleges the companies sparked a rise in natural disasters that has driven up homeowners’ insurance premiums and claims they mounted a “coordinated and deliberate scheme to hide the truth about climate change and the effects of burning fossil fuels.”
Fuel prices at a Shell gas station in Burien, Washington, on Wednesday, March 9, 2022. (Chona Kasinger/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
But in addition to the DOJ referral, Hagens Berman has thus far struggled to secure clear victories or settlements in its climate cases and was dealt some legal blows in that realm in recent years.
Efforts to reach a Hagens Berman representative for comment were unsuccessful by press time.
In 2018, Judge William Alsup, a Clinton appointee, tossed out San Francisco and Oakland’s case, which was brought by Hagens Berman against fossil fuel companies over the alleged effects of climate change. Alsup called the scope of the cities’ claims in that case “breathtaking.”
“It would reach the sale of fossil fuels anywhere in the world, including all past and otherwise lawful sales, where the seller knew that the combustion of fossil fuels contributed to the phenomenon of global warming,” Alsup wrote.
The cities dropped Hagens Berman as their representation after a series of adverse decisions in that case.
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People march as they take part in a strike to demand action on the global climate crisis on Sept. 20, 2019, in New York City. (Spencer Platt/Getty Images)
The law firm also lost in a similar case that same year in New York. In that dismissal, the late Judge John Keenan, a Reagan appointee, again found Hagens Berman’s lawsuit was far too expansive.
“The City has not sued under New York law for claims related to the production of fossil fuels in New York,” Keenan wrote. “The City brings claims for damages caused by global greenhouse gas emissions resulting from the combustion of Defendants’ fossil fuels, which are produced and used ‘worldwide.’”
The DOJ review, if upheld by the 3rd Circuit, could now overshadow the firm’s more recent endeavors and raises the stakes for the practice as it continues to take on ambitious cases.
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Lori Wisniewski lost her Nevada City home in a fire last year and has been living in a 150-square-foot tiny home while she waits for her house to be rebuilt.
It’s being rebuilt at little to no cost to her, thanks to her community stepping up to help.
“I had to jump off the deck, and I thought the dogs would be coming out too, and they didn’t, so that’s very sad,” she said, recounting the day of the fire on January 27, 2025.
Wisniewski lost her pets and home after an accident with her wood-burning stove. She says she wasn’t sure how to move forward without proper insurance and navigating the process without her husband, who died from cancer.
“In First James, it talks about serving widows and orphans as being true religion. So when I saw Lori’s story come across my path, I knew that was an opportunity to put my money where my mouth is with my faith,” said Matthew Sutherlin, CEO of Green Bee Construction.
Sutherlin is spearheading the rebuild of Wisniewski’s home with the help of donated time, labor and materials from other local tradespeople and businesses.
“Who am I to have a designer? And part of me, too, is when I have to choose everything, I always try to go for the least expensive item or tile or front door,” she said.
“Everybody has been shaving things off and donating things and getting reduced costs all the way across the board. That’s what has made it possible for this project to have worked,” said Sutherlin.
It’s been all hands on deck during the last year.
Wisniewski was excited to show us the inside of the house and what’s to come. As a former post-surgical nurse, she even decided an accessible room would be a nice touch for friends or anyone who lent a hand.
“If somebody has to recover or needs a few days to get around after a surgery, they can come and stay in here,” she said.
The builders say the weather has been posing a challenge, especially coupled with hazardous materials leftover from the fire. But they’re getting through it together.
“Every person has stepped up to offer their help. The timing with all the different processes has worked out in our favor. I really believe the whole thing has a blessing on it, really,” said Sutherlin.
Builders expect to be finished with the house in late spring or early summer.
“This community, a lot of them have seen your reports. At Grocery Outlet, ‘oh, you’re the one whose house burned down,’ and I always go into the most important thing about this is what people from the community are doing for this purpose or cause. I sometimes wonder why me? Why am I getting this opportunity? So that’s where I am today,” said Wisniewski.
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