Massachusetts residents can sue for money over climate-related deception under Chapter 93A and for court orders against environmental harm under the citizen-suit law. They cannot collect payouts from the 2026 lawsuit challenging the EPA's repeal of climate rules.
Chapter 93A is the state consumer-protection law. It lets an injured person seek damages for unfair or deceptive business acts. A separate citizen-suit law lets groups seek cleanup and injunctions for harm to natural resources.
Official resource:
- Read the official notice from Onecle — Use this primary source to verify the official announcement.
Table of Contents
- Will the EPA endangerment case pay you?
- What deception claims can win money?
- What must you do before suing?
- What can environmental citizen suits win?
Will the EPA endangerment case pay you?
No. The State Energy & Environmental Impact Center reports that Attorney General Campbell joined 24 other attorneys general in a March 2026 petition to the D.C. Circuit to overturn the EPA's Feb.
12, 2026 repeal of the 2009 endangerment finding. That case seeks reinstatement of greenhouse-gas regulation. Residents seeking money need a different case. A deception claim or citizen suit is the vehicle for consumer damages or local cleanup.
What deception claims can win money?
A person harmed by an unfair or deceptive practice may sue in Superior Court for damages and injunctions, including as a class action for similarly injured people. According to DeSmog's October 2019 report, the attorney general used this law on Oct. 24, 2019 to sue ExxonMobil over alleged greenwashing ads to consumers and misleading statements to investors about climate risks.
The Supreme Judicial Court later allowed that enforcement case to proceed. On May 24, 2022, it held the anti-SLAPP dismissal law does not apply to attorney general civil enforcement actions. A private case follows the same consumer-protection path, but the resident must prove personal injury from the deception.
What must you do before suing?
State law requires a written demand 30 days before filing, as set out in the text of Chapter 93A Section 9. The demand identifies the deceptive act and the loss.
It gives the business a chance to settle. Winners receive actual damages or $25, whichever is greater. A judge can double or treble damages for willful or knowing deception, plus attorney's fees and equitable relief.
- Send a dated demand letter describing the ad, product, and amount lost
- Wait the full 30 days before filing in Superior Court
- Keep receipts, ads, bills, and delivery proof
What can environmental citizen suits win?
These suits win orders, not checks. At least ten domiciled residents or a municipality may sue in Superior Court for equitable or declaratory relief against actual or probable damage to natural resources. Examples include an order to stop a discharge or to clean up a site.
Limits apply. Plaintiffs must tie the harm to violation of a statute, ordinance, bylaw, or regulation whose major purpose is environmental protection. They must give defendants 21 days written notice before filing.