Photo via Toronto Star

A new Supreme Court term begins with cases on climate change, immigration and gun rights

Read the original at Toronto Star ↗
Cite

Whitehurst, L. (2026, October 5). A new Supreme Court term begins with cases on climate change, immigration and gun rights. Toronto Star. https://www.thestar.com/news/world/united-states/a-new-supreme-court-term-begins-with-cases-on-climate-change-immigration-and-gun-rights/article_45a0437c-e91b-5528-a811-834c2cfd8d13.html

Dated when The Aporia collected the article, usually within hours of publication. Check the original for its exact date and byline.

Toronto Star · collected 2026-10-05 · by Lindsay Whitehurst

Quick Summary

The Supreme Court's new term begins with significant cases addressing climate change, gun control, and immigration policies. Energy companies like Suncor and ExxonMobil are challenging lawsuits in Boulder, Colorado, which seek to hold them financially responsible for damages caused by climate change. Additionally, the court will consider challenges to state laws banning assault-style weapons and Trump's deportation practices involving migrants who cannot be returned swiftly to their home countries. The term also includes cases on Arizona voting laws and religious rights for Catholic preschools in Colorado.
Written by AI on 2026-10-05, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

AI analysis

Story summary

The Supreme Court opened its new term on Monday by hearing arguments in Suncor Energy v. Boulder County, a landmark case that could determine whether states and local governments can sue oil and gas companies for climate change damages. The case, which began in 2018 when Boulder County sued Exxon Mobil and Suncor Energy, accuses these companies of contributing to climate-related harms through their fossil fuel operations. The lawsuit aims to hold the companies financially responsible for local climate impacts using state tort laws.

If the Supreme Court allows such lawsuits, it could set a precedent for similar cases across the nation, potentially affecting industries that emit carbon and leading to increased costs for consumers due to higher legal liabilities. Conversely, if the court rules against Boulder County, it would limit states' ability to use their courts for addressing national policy issues like climate change through tort law, thereby protecting manufacturers from an expanding patchwork of lawsuits based on complex environmental problems.

Written for “Supreme Court Climate Case” on 2026-11-04, grounded in this article and the 35 other(s) covering the same event.

Story

📰 Supreme Court Climate Case
Environment · 36 article(s) covering the same event. Compare every outlet's account →

Compared with similar articles

This article reads leans left and hedges 3% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.
ABC News (US)
⚖️ Leans left Hedges 1 of 30 claims Outlet record 67/100
CBS News
Hedges 0 of 2 claims Outlet record 65/100
NPR
Hedges 8 of 52 claims Outlet record 60/100
NBC News
⚖️ Leans left Hedges 7 of 33 claims Outlet record 78/100
Fox News
⚖️ Leans right further right than this Hedges 6 of 42 claims Outlet record 68/100
Washington Examiner
Hedges 7 of 40 claims Outlet record 69/100
Fox News
⚖️ Leans right further right than this Hedges 11 of 35 claims Outlet record 68/100
Reason
⚖️ Leans left Hedges 4 of 28 claims Outlet record 67/100
“The articles discuss different aspects of the Supreme Court's new term; Article A mentions past cases and orders, while Article B focuses on upcoming cases for the beginning of the new term.”
NPR
⚖️ Leans left Hedges 8 of 51 claims Outlet record 60/100
Fox News
Hedges 3 of 56 claims Outlet record 68/100
How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted
29
sentences that state something as happening or true
Uncertain
3%
1 of 29 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")
Leaning
Leans left
of the writing, not the subject · beta estimate
Publisher signals
64/100
Toronto Star's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.
Outlets on this story
36
Environment
Same framing elsewhere
1
articles that frame the event the way this one does
Analyzed 2026-10-05 · how these are computed

How this is being covered How these are calculated →

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability
Source leaning vs. consistency

Publisher

Toronto Star · 11561 article(s) · 28 correction(s) detected
Running correction rate · 28 correction(s)
2026-10-26
Correction
2026-10-24
Correction
2026-10-07
Correction
2026-09-24
Correction

Who wrote this

Lindsay Whitehurst
19 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
🔮 WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court will hear arguments Tuesday in a case brought by Catholic preschools that say it’s unconstitutional to exclude them from a state-funded program over their admissions policy for LGBTQ+ families, the latest religious-rights case before the conservative-majority court.
🔮 But in the Big Bend region, the administration has run into opposition from ranchers, residents, business owners and environmentalists who argue the projects are a waste of money in an area of historically low illegal immigration and that construction could harm the region’s scenic landscapes.
🔮 The justices will hear an appeal from energy companies trying to block dozens of lawsuits seeking to hold them liable in court for damage related to climate change.
🔮 And it does feel like maybe the oil and gas industry should have a part in this.”
🔮 Since then, an appeals court has upheld a Boston-based judge’s final ruling that migrants must have a meaningful chance to argue a third-country deportation would put them in danger of persecution or torture.
🔮 Lawyers for the couple had urged the court to reject the request, questioning what an intervention would do for medical decision-making at an already chaotic time.
🔮 None of the three justices wrote about their rationale for joining the majority opinion, though Justice Brett Kavanaugh indicated he might see things differently if the election wasn’t coming up so quickly.
🔮 The Supreme Court majority indicated that the effort to enact these restrictions this year would probably prove unsuccessful legally, though its brief emergency order provided no extensive rationale.
🔮 In the filing, Solicitor General John Sauer said: “Ballots have already begun to be mailed in North Carolina, and more States will begin the mailing process as the injunction remains in place — including Alabama on September 9 and at least five States the week of September 13.”
🔮 The legal wrangling comes even as states start sending out mail ballots, leaving the administration little time to make big changes in mail ballot rules. “Ballots have already begun to be mailed in North Carolina, and more States will begin the mailing process as the injunction remains in place — including Alabama on September 9 and at least five States the week of September 13,” Solicitor General John Sauer said in the filing.
Also by Lindsay Whitehurst
Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.
All 19 articles by Lindsay Whitehurst →

Topics

Boulder Colorado Suncor The Supreme Court’s WASHINGTON

Subjects

Colorado GPE · 3× Trump PERSON · 3× Boulder GPE · 1× Donald Trump PERSON · 1× ExxonMobil ORG · 1× Suncor ORG · 1× The Supreme Court ORG · 1× The Supreme Court’s ORG · 1× U.S. GPE · 1× WASHINGTON GPE · 1×

Narrative

Billions of dollars are potentially at stake in a case out of Boulder, Colorado, where local officials say the industry should help shoulder the escalating costs of disasters linked to climate change.
framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-10-05
🔮 The justices will hear an appeal from energy companies trying to block dozens of lawsuits seeking to hold them liable in court for damage related to climate change.

Claims (29 extracted, 1 hedged)

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court’s new term begins Monday with cases on climate change, religious rights and President Donald Trump’s crackdown on immigration high on the agenda. asserted
term → begin → agenda
Here’s a look at what’s in store: asserted
what → ’ → store
Climate change The high court is starting its term with a major climate change case. asserted
court → start → case
The justices will hear an appeal from energy companies trying to block dozens of lawsuits seeking to hold them liable in court for damage related to climate change. asserted
them → hear → change
Billions of dollars are potentially at stake in a case out of Boulder, Colorado, where local officials say the industry should help shoulder the escalating costs of disasters linked to climate change. asserted
industry → say → change
The companies, Suncor and ExxonMobil, say lawsuits aren’t the way to deal with the global issue. asserted
lawsuits → say → issue
They have the backing of the Trump administration, which argues the litigation is a power grab intended to impose regulations on emissions. asserted
litigation → have → emissions
About a dozen states have banned semiautomatic rifles like AR-15s, which are often called assault weapons. asserted
which → ban → AR-15s
They say the guns are disproportionately used in mass shootings, and banning them helps reduce gun violence. asserted
banning → say → violence
Challengers say those laws violate the Second Amendment. asserted
laws → say → Amendment
They argue that AR-15s and other similar weapons are among the most popular and commonly owned guns in the country. asserted
AR-15s → argue → country
The conservative-majority court has expanded gun rights in recent years, and four justices had signaled that it was only a matter of time before the court took up the issue. asserted
court → expand → issue
The case will be considered in December. asserted
case → consider → December
The court will hear two significant immigration cases with potentially big implications for Trump’s wide-reaching crackdown. asserted
court → hear → crackdown
One is about deportations of migrants who can’t be quickly sent back to their home countries. asserted
who → send → countries
The Trump administration has been sending thousands to other countries where they have no ties, under a series of often-secret agreements. asserted
they → send → agreements
The Supreme Court will consider overturning lower court orders allowing them a chance to object. asserted
Court → consider → chance
The justices have allowed the flights to continue in the meantime. asserted
flights → allow → meantime
The other case is over the administration’s mandatory detention policy for immigrants who have been living in the U.S. illegally, even if they’ve been in the country for years. asserted
they → live → years
The administration argues it can hold people without a bond hearing, but most appeals courts that have considered the issue disagree. asserted
that → argue → issue
Voting A Republican push to enforce strict Arizona voting laws will also come before the justices this term. asserted
push → enforce → justices
One measure requires people to show proof of citizenship when registering to vote using a state form, and another calls for regular purges of the voter rolls to remove people if their citizenship could not be confirmed. uncertain
citizenship → require → people
It comes as Trump has failed to get legislation requiring documentary proof of citizenship for registering to vote through Congress. asserted
Trump → come → Congress
Arguments are set for December. asserted
Arguments → set → December
Religious rights Catholic preschools that can’t take part in a taxpayer-funded program in Colorado will come before the court in November. asserted
that → take → November
It’s the justices’ latest case involving religious rights. asserted
It → ’ → rights
St. Mary Catholic Parish says it’s been left out of the state’s universal preschool program over its faith-based admissions policies, which exclude kids from LGBTQ+ families. asserted
which → say → families
Colorado says religious schools are welcome to participate but have to follow nondiscrimination laws. asserted
schools → say → laws
The program was created by a 2020 ballot measure and provides public funding for preschool at schools selected by parents. asserted
program → create → parents
💬Give feedback · no sign-in needed

No sign-in needed for now. Your note is sent without a name, so it cannot be answered.

🕘History 🎫Support