Los Angeles – September 15, 2026 -- Twenty-five of 38 organizations that filed Supreme Court briefs supporting ExxonMobil and Suncor in a pending climate-liability case have documented financial ties to fossil fuel defendants, the broader oil industry, or dark-money networks, according to a new investigation from Consumer Watchdog.
Consumer Watchdog Ties 66% of Amicus Filers to Fossil Fuel Funding Networks
The report, "A Field Guide to Fossil Fuel Front Groups: Coordinating a Supreme Court Campaign to Shield Big Oil," maps funding overlaps among groups backing Exxon and Suncor ahead of oral arguments set for October 5 in Suncor Energy Inc. v. Board of County Commissioners of Boulder County. The case will determine whether U.S. communities can use state law to hold fossil fuel companies liable for allegedly misleading the public on climate change and shifting climate-related costs onto taxpayers.
According to the investigation, ExxonMobil directly funded 11 of the organizations filing briefs, while entities linked to billionaire investor Paul Singer connect to nine. The Koch network and the Bradley Foundation each tie to 16 of the groups, with many organizations receiving support from multiple networks simultaneously.
Manhattan Institute's Donor Holds $1.58 Billion Stake in Suncor Stock
The Manhattan Institute, which filed a brief supporting Exxon and Suncor, lists billionaire Paul Singer as chairman emeritus and a longtime major donor. Singer's Elliott Investment Management holds more than $1.58 billion in Suncor stock, the report found.
Consumer Watchdog also flagged a separate connection involving Justice Samuel Alito's wife, who leased family land to oil and gas producer Citizen Energy. Citizen was later acquired for more than $2 billion by a company majority-owned by Elliott Investment Management.
Landmark Legal Foundation Omits ExxonMobil Funding History From Court Filing
Landmark Legal Foundation's brief states that no party or lawyer in the case financed or authored it. Consumer Watchdog's investigation found the foundation has received ExxonMobil funding, including grants earmarked for "environmental accountability," and that a former ExxonMobil employee once served on its board. Supreme Court disclosure rules do not require amicus filers to reveal such funding history.
Consumer Watchdog published an interactive version of the field guide at ConsumerWatchdog.org, allowing users to trace funding links across the 38 organizations that filed briefs in the case.