Business Groups Back Exxon Lawsuit to Stop Activist Climate Bids

Top business trade groups told a Texas federal court that ExxonMobil Corp.'s lawsuit against two of its investors is necessary to stop shareholder activists that “inundate public corporations with proposals designed to push ideological agendas.”

The US Chamber of Commerce and the Business Roundtable filed a joint amicus brief in the suit on Wednesday arguing that the Houston oil company was right to sue activists Arjuna Capital and Follow This after they tried to pressure the company to speed up its greenhouse gas emissions reductions.

The shareholders dropped their proposal after they were sued in the US District Court for ...