Did California’s attorney general and several other groups defame Exxon Mobil when they sued the oil giant last year over its role in widespread plastic pollution?

That was the question looming over a recent hearing in federal court in Beaumont, Texas, where Exxon Mobil has countersued Attorney General Rob Bonta of California and the nonprofit groups, accusing them of mounting a conspiracy to destroy its recycling business. Exxon’s aggressive move signaled a sharp escalation by the oil giant as it tries to ward off similar suits in the future.

During the daylong hearing on Aug. 20, lawyers for Mr. Bonta and the nonprofit groups tried to persuade Judge Michael J. Truncale to toss the case, or at least transfer it to California so it could be adjudicated alongside the original lawsuits. The lawyer for Exxon, Michael P. Cash, shot back that the “attack” had been aimed squarely at Texas and the matter should be litigated there.

He summarized the case this way for the judge: “We have advanced recycling down here, we make plastics down here, we do a good job of it, and you’re messing with our customers and you’re messing with their livelihood in Texas by lying about us.”

To illustrate his position, Mr. Cash displayed a graphic showing a missile aimed at Texas from California. At another point, he juxtaposed images of the TV show “The Sopranos” with a screenshot of a news conference held by Mr. Bonta and the nonprofits.

Mr. Bonta sued Exxon in California state court in September, accusing it of deceiving Californians by “promising that recycling could and would solve the ever-growing plastic waste crisis.” Four nonprofit organizations — the Sierra Club, Baykeeper, Heal the Bay and Surfrider Foundation — filed a parallel suit the same day. The suits alleged violations of state nuisance and unfair-competition laws and sought damages that Mr. Bonta estimated would amount to “multiple billions of dollars.”