A Last Week Tonight segment on the coal industry got Oliver into some legal trouble in June 2017. The story largely focused on Murray Energy Corporation. Criticizing the notoriously litigious Bob Murray for mistreating his employees and attempting to weaken industry safety regulations, Oliver referred to him as a "geriatric Dr. Evil" while a man dressed in a squirrel costume told him to "eat s**t."

"Bob Murray, I didn't really plan for so much of this piece to be about you, but you kinda forced my hand on that one," the comedian said, explaining that the company had sent a cease and desist letter before the taping. "And I know you're probably going to sue me over this. But, you know what? I stand by everything I said."

The coal magnate promptly hit Oliver, HBO, and Time Warner with a defamation lawsuit. While the ACLU released an amicus brief hilariously stating, "You can't sue people for being mean to you, Bob," a judge dismissed the case in February 2018, citing Oliver's First Amendment rights.

"Now is not the time for victory laps. It's not a time for gloating," Oliver said, celebrating the legal victory on-air while promising to tell fans all about the lawsuit as soon as he could. "It's not a time for saying, 'Hey, we won,' and just rubbing it in the face of the person who lost over and over again. That time will come. Oh, it will come!"

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