A federal appeals court ruled June 2 that a youth-led constitutional climate lawsuit challenging three of President Donald Trump's executive orders cannot proceed, dealing a significant setback to Montana plaintiffs who had traveled to Missoula's federal courthouse in September to argue their case. The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals rejected the suit, which sought to overturn executive orders the plaintiffs said supported the fossil fuel industry, curtailed renewable energy development, and suppressed climate-related information.

Plaintiff Eva Lighthiser was among the young Montanans who waited outside the Missoula courthouse on September 16, 2025, for the hearing that preceded Tuesday's ruling. The case represented one of the more high-profile legal challenges to the administration's energy and environmental policy, using a constitutional framework rather than a statutory one — an approach that courts have so far been unwilling to accept.

The Ninth Circuit's reasoning in the June 2 decision was not immediately detailed in available reporting, but the outcome continues a pattern of federal courts declining to recognize constitutional standing in climate litigation of this type. Similar youth-led climate suits have faced steep procedural hurdles in courts across the country over the past several years.

For the Montana plaintiffs, the ruling closes the door on this particular legal avenue. Whether the group pursues further appeals or refiles under a different legal theory remains to be seen. The executive orders at the center of the lawsuit remain in effect.