A Field Guide to Fossil Fuel Front Groups

It is a climate deception case at the U.S. Supreme Court. The city of Boulder and Boulder County, Colorado argue that ExxonMobil and Suncor knew about the dangers of climate change and misled the public about those risks, so the companies should help pay for the damage. Exxon and Suncor argue that Boulder cannot use state tort law against them and that such claims are governed or precluded by federal law. The Court will effectively decide who pays for climate-related harm: the public, or the oil companies whose deceptive conduct exacerbated the crisis.

An amicus curiae brief — literally "friend of the court" — is filed by someone who is not a party to a case but wants to influence its outcome. Courts often read them as a signal of how widely an argument is supported. That is exactly why it matters who is behind them: thirty-eight organizations filed briefs supporting Exxon and Suncor, creating the appearance of broad, independent agreement.

Of the 38 organizations that filed briefs supporting Suncor and Exxon, Consumer Watchdog documented that 25 — roughly two-thirds — had financial ties to at least one of three overlapping networks: the fossil fuel defendants themselves, the broader fossil fuel industry including Charles Koch's network, and the climate-denial foundations and dark-money funds that have financed opposition to climate science and regulation for decades.

A front group is an organization that presents itself as independent — a think tank, a legal foundation, a taxpayer or consumer advocate — while being funded and shaped by the industry whose interests it advances. The branding is usually civic: "transparency", "accountability", "fairness". The funding tells a different story.

Every tie in this guide comes from the public record: IRS Form 990 filings for the funders and the recipients, corporate giving disclosures, SEC filings, foundation grant databases, court filings, and prior reporting by outlets and researchers, each linked inline in the case file. Where a donor-advised fund obscures the original donor, the guide says so plainly rather than inferring a link the paperwork does not support.

No, and this guide does not claim that. What the record shows is a financial relationship that the Court and the public were not told about, between organizations presenting themselves as independent voices and the industry whose liability is at stake. Readers can weigh that for themselves — which is why every tie is documented and sourced.

Consumer Watchdog documented financial or governance ties between Advancing American Freedom Foundation and Leonard Leo, Searle Freedom Trust and National Philanthropic Trust. Mike Pence’s advocacy group — a Leonard-Leo-funded booster of fossil-fuel “energy dominance.” Read the full case file →

Consumer Watchdog documented financial or governance ties between American Tort Reform Association and ExxonMobil, Bradley Foundation and Leonard Leo. A 40-year corporate campaign to restrict liability — now aimed squarely at climate suits. Read the full case file →

Consumer Watchdog documented financial or governance ties between Atlantic Legal Foundation and Koch Network, ExxonMobil, Bradley Foundation and Scaife Family. “Big business’ answer to Ralph Nader” — and never far from ExxonMobil in court. Read the full case file →

Consumer Watchdog documented financial or governance ties between Buckeye Institute and Koch Network, Bradley Foundation, Leonard Leo, Searle Freedom Trust, Scaife Family and National Philanthropic Trust. Ohio’s SPN think tank — Searle- and Koch-funded, with a gas executive on its board. Read the full case file →

Consumer Watchdog documented financial or governance ties between Center for Environmental Accountability and Koch Network, ExxonMobil and Bradley Foundation. A one-mailbox “accountability” group that files oil-industry lawyers’ work under its own name. Read the full case file →

Consumer Watchdog documented financial or governance ties between Center for Individual Freedom and Leonard Leo. A dark-money advocacy group funded through Leonard Leo’s Freedom & Opportunity Fund. Read the full case file →

Consumer Watchdog documented financial or governance ties between Center for Individual Rights and Koch Network, Bradley Foundation, Scaife Family, Leonard Leo and National Philanthropic Trust. A conservative legal shop bankrolled by Olin, Bradley, Scaife and Leo — surfacing whenever Big Oil is in court. Read the full case file →

Consumer Watchdog documented financial or governance ties between Consumers’ Research and Bradley Foundation, Searle Freedom Trust and National Philanthropic Trust. Anti-“ESG” campaign vehicle — Bradley, Searle. Read the full case file →

Consumer Watchdog documented financial or governance ties between Frontier Institute and Koch Network. State Policy Network affiliate — Koch-funded. Read the full case file →

Consumer Watchdog documented financial or governance ties between Government Accountability & Oversight and Joe Craft. FOIA-litigation shop funded by coal billionaire Joe Craft. Read the full case file →

Consumer Watchdog documented financial or governance ties between Independence Institute and Koch Network, ExxonMobil, Bradley Foundation, Leonard Leo, Scaife Family and National Philanthropic Trust. Colorado think tank tied to Exxon, Koch, Leo, Bradley and Scaife. Read the full case file →

Consumer Watchdog documented financial or governance ties between Landmark Legal Foundation and ExxonMobil, Koch Network, Scaife Family, Bradley Foundation and Searle Freedom Trust. Conservative legal foundation tied to Exxon, Koch, Scaife, Bradley and Searle money; joined the Advancing American Freedom-led coalition brief for Exxon and Suncor. Read the full case file →

Consumer Watchdog documented financial or governance ties between Manhattan Institute and Koch Network, ExxonMobil, Bradley Foundation, Leonard Leo, Paul Singer, Searle Freedom Trust, Scaife Family and National Philanthropic Trust. The most cross-funded group in the network — seven backers. Read the full case file →

Consumer Watchdog documented financial or governance ties between National Association of Manufacturers and ExxonMobil and Harold Hamm. Manufacturing trade lobby; ExxonMobil is a member. Read the full case file →

Consumer Watchdog documented financial or governance ties between NFIB Small Business Legal Center and Koch Network and Bradley Foundation. The litigation arm of the NFIB, funded via Koch donor funds (DonorsTrust, Donors Capital) and the Bradley Foundation. Read the full case file →

Consumer Watchdog documented financial or governance ties between Pacific Legal Foundation and Koch Network, ExxonMobil, Bradley Foundation, Searle Freedom Trust and Scaife Family. Libertarian litigation shop — Koch, Exxon, Bradley, Searle, Scaife. Read the full case file →

Consumer Watchdog documented financial or governance ties between Pelican Institute and Koch Network, Bradley Foundation, Searle Freedom Trust and Scaife Family. Louisiana SPN think tank — Koch, Bradley, Searle, Scaife. Read the full case file →

Consumer Watchdog documented financial or governance ties between Save Our States and Bradley Foundation, Searle Freedom Trust, Scaife Family and Leonard Leo. Federalism / elections group — Bradley, Searle, Scaife. Read the full case file →

Consumer Watchdog documented financial or governance ties between Taxpayers Protection Alliance and Koch Network and Leonard Leo. A self-styled “taxpayer watchdog” funded through the Koch network (Americans for Job Security, American Future Fund) and Leo’s Freedom & Opportunity Fund; a prominent opponent of renewable energy. Read the full case file →

Consumer Watchdog documented financial or governance ties between The Breakthrough Institute and Koch Network and National Philanthropic Trust. An “environmental” institute that accepts the science — then argues Big Oil shouldn’t pay for it. Read the full case file →

Consumer Watchdog documented financial or governance ties between Washington Legal Foundation and Koch Network, ExxonMobil, Bradley Foundation, Scaife Family and National Philanthropic Trust. Corporate-defense law firm — Koch, Exxon, Bradley, Scaife. Read the full case file →

Consumer Watchdog documented financial or governance ties between Yankee Institute and Koch Network and Bradley Foundation. Connecticut SPN think tank; took $3.7M-plus from the Koch donor funds DonorsTrust and Donors Capital Fund and opposes clean-energy mandates. Read the full case file →

Spending intended to influence policy, courts or elections where the original source of the funds is not disclosed. The money is legal; the anonymity is the point.

A charitable account held by a sponsoring organization. A donor puts money in and recommends where it goes, but the public filings show only the sponsor as the grantmaker — so the original donor disappears from the paper trail. DonorsTrust, Donors Capital Fund and National Philanthropic Trust all appear in this investigation.

A 501(c)(3) is a charity: donations are tax deductible and political activity is limited. A 501(c)(4) is a "social welfare" organization: donations are not deductible, but it can lobby and campaign far more freely. Many groups in this guide operate both, under one brand.

Lawsuits alleging that fossil fuel companies knew about the harms of their products and misled the public about them. They generally seek damages under state consumer-protection, fraud and nuisance law rather than asking a court to set national emissions policy.

The argument that federal law displaces state law on a subject. It is the central legal move in the briefs backing Exxon and Suncor: if federal law governs climate claims, state courts cannot hear them.