Exxon Mobil is seeking to move its legal home from New Jersey to Texas, saying the change would help the company avoid “frivolous” shareholder lawsuits.
The plan drew cheers from Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R), who has tried to position the state as a business-friendly alternative to the East and West coasts. Environment advocates and legal experts said the decision is another tactic to help shield the country’s biggest oil and gas company from climate and environmental lawsuits.
Exxon detailed its plans to ask shareholders to approve the change in a regulatory filing Tuesday, noting that about 75 percent of the company’s U.S. employees work in Texas and 30 percent of its global employees are based there. The request comes as Exxon and other oil majors have prioritized killing off a raft of lawsuits from local and state governments that seek compensation for the costs of climate change.
Moving its legal home to Texas wouldn’t affect the pending suits, but it would make it harder to bring future actions, said Pat Parenteau, an emeritus professor at Vermont Law and Graduate School. Exxon already lists its principal executive offices as being in Spring, Texas. The legal move will be up for a vote by shareholders in May.
