(Bloomberg) -- A group of teenagers accusing the U.S. government of doing little to combat climate change can proceed with a lawsuit but President Donald Trump is out of the case.

U.S. District Judge Ann Aiken on Monday rejected government requests to throw out the lawsuit, saying to do so would be premature based on the evidence provided by the plaintiffs.

The judge said the students can get what they want by suing officials below the president, but she left the door open for Trump to be reinstated as a defendant in the case, if necessary.

Lawyers for the teens had argued the president shouldn’t be excused for failing in his official capacity to protect the environment from rising global temperatures while subsidizing fossil fuel-dependent industries.

The U.S has asked the Supreme Court to put the lawsuit on hold.

To contact the reporter on this story: Joe Schneider in New York at jschneider5@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: David Glovin at dglovin@bloomberg.net

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