The Trump administration filed a motion on March 7 to appeal to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals on a federal judge’s order in Juliana v. United States.

Juliana v. United States is an historic case brought by 21 young plaintiffs who argue that their constitutional and public trust rights are being violated by the government’s creation of climate danger.

The Trump administration also filed a motion to delay trial preparation until after its appeal is considered. It also asked for expedited review of both motions, arguing that the young plaintiffs’ January 2017 letter requesting that the government retain records-relating to climate change and communications between the government and the fossil fuel industry – was overly burdensome.

However, in another complex case regarding the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, the United States produced over 17 million pages of documents from April to September of 2011.

In response to the March 7 motions by the Trump administration, the plaintiffs maintain that their requests are limited, reasonable, and aimed at getting to trial this fall.

Mary Wood, a law professor at the University of Oregon with expertise in climate law, notes, “The Trump administration is likely asking for this because discovery itself could dredge up such incriminating information that they would rather keep behind the scenes, and I think that’s what they’re really worried about.”

One 20-year-old plaintiff and Columbia University student, Alex Loznak, responded to the Trump administration’s motion, saying, “This request for appeal is an attempt to cover up the federal government’s long-running collusion with the fossil fuel industry. My generation cannot wait…  These documents must be uncovered with all deliberate speed, so that our trial can force federal action on climate change.”

Young people in the U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon first filed the Constitutional climate lawsuit in 2015. They asserted that through the government’s actions that cause climate change, it has violated the constitutional rights of new generations to life, liberty and property.

Appeals typically do not occur until a trial court has issued final rulings following the presentation of evidence, but the Trump administration is asking federal Magistrate Judge Coffin to exercise his discretion to allow the case to proceed to the Court of Appeals before final judgment.

Juliana v. United States is one of many related legal actions brought by youth in several states and countries, all supported by Our Children’s Trust, a group that insists that future generations have a legal right to stable climate and healthy atmosphere.