Ninth Circuit Upholds California’s Scope 1 and Scope 2 Emissions Reporting Requirements, Blocks Scope 3 and Climate-Risk Disclosures

By Myles Culhane, Thomas R. Brill, Barbara A. Jones, Alice Kessler & Madeline Orlando on November 12, 2026

Posted in California, carbon emissions, Climate Change, Featured, Litigation, State & Local

On Nov. 9, 2026, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit issued its decision in U.S. Chamber of Commerce v. Sanchez, affirming in part and reversing in part the district court’s denial of a preliminary injunction against California’s landmark corporate climate disclosure laws, Senate Bill (SB) 253 and SB 261.

The court allowed SB 253’s Scope 1 and Scope 2 greenhouse gas emissions disclosure requirements to remain in effect but granted the preliminary injunction with regard to SB 253’s Scope 3 requirements and SB 261 in its entirety. Consequently, the California Air Resources Board (CARB’s)’s initial Scope 1 and 2 emissions reporting remains. CARB is currently undertaking a second rulemaking process to develop reporting requirements for 2027 and beyond.

The decision means that covered companies remain subject to SB 253’s currently applicable Scope 1 and Scope 2 reporting requirements. At the same time, the decision changes the outlook for California’s broader climate disclosure regime by permitting preliminary relief against SB 261 and Scope 3 reporting under SB 253.