(Adds details, comments from attorney general, Exxon) WASHINGTON, Oct 26 (Reuters) - Exxon Mobil Corp and accounting firm PwC must turn over documents related to the oil major’s representations of the impact of climate change on its business and assets, the New York Supreme Court ruled on Wednesday. Attorney General Eric Schneiderman's office on Oct. 14 asked the court to compel PwC to comply with an August subpoena and hand over documents after Exxon said it would not permit the auditor to do so due to accountant-client privilege. (on.ny.gov/2f8lvzA) (on.ny.gov/2f8iXBE) Schneiderman said Wednesday that “Exxon had no legal basis to interfere with PwC’s production.” “I hope that today’s order serves as a wake-up call to Exxon that the best thing they can do is cooperate with, rather than resist, our investigation,” he said. A group of state attorneys general, led by New York, said in March they would go after the world’s largest publicly traded oil company for allegedly violating securities laws by soft-pedaling the dangers of climate change and efforts to fight it. Schneiderman’s office has also inquired why the oil major had not written down the value of its assets in the wake of a slump in oil prices. Exxon plans to appeal the court’s decision in the coming days. “We respectfully disagree with the court’s ruling and intend to take an immediate appeal,” said Alan Jeffers, spokesman for Exxon. Exxon said New York’s inquiry has periodically shifted focus, first by looking for misleading comments about climate change, then moving onto the value of its reserves and how they might be “stranded” in the ground by carbon regulation in the future. Exxon said in September the U.S. Securities & Exchange Commission is the right agency to vet how it books reserves and that it complies with accounting and securities laws. (Reporting by Valerie Volcovici in Washington and Arathy S Nair in Bengaluru; Editing by Savio D’Souza and Lisa Shumaker)
New York’s Supreme Court has ruled that Exxon Mobil and PwC must release documents relating to the oil company’s presentation of its exposure to climate change risks. Several state attorneys general announced in March that they would pursue Exxon, the largest publicly-traded oil firm in the world, for potential violations of securities laws. Exxon is alleged to have downplayed the dangers posed by climate change and its vulnerability to efforts to combat such change. The New York court also asked Exxon to explain why it had not downgraded the value of its assets due to the falling oil price.