Chevron has failed in its move to dismiss an $18bn fine for alleged environmental damage in Ecuador. The original verdict in the case, which Chevron has described as fraudulent, was upheld by three appeals court judges, who found Chevron liable for pollution in the Amazon basin dating back 20 years.
The original 2011 verdict had fined Chevron $8.6bn. However, following the company’s failure to make an apology, the figure was more than doubled, making it one of the most expensive environmental suits in history. A recently-issued statement by Chevron claimed that prosecution lawyers collaborated with the judge in the case to draft the verdict, and sought a criminal investigation.
The case was brought against Texaco, which Chevron took over in 2001, on behalf of residents in the basin. It accused Texaco of dumping toxic materials totalling 18bn gallons into rivers and unlined pits from 1972 to 1992. Chevron, meanwhile, argued that Texaco cleaned up its share of environmental damage and received a 1998 release from the Government absolving it of further responsibility.
In a statement, Chevron described the latest ruling as an illegitimate decision. “Today’s decision is another glaring example of the politicization and corruption of Ecuador’s judiciary that has plagued this fraudulent case from the start. The Lago Agrio judgment was procured through a corrupt and fraudulent scheme, much of which was captured on film and memorialized in the plaintiffs’ representatives’ own emails and correspondence. Their misconduct includes fabricating expert reports, manufacturing evidence, bribing and colluding with court officials, waging a campaign of intimidation against judges, and even ghostwriting parts of the verdict itself,” said the company.
“Evidence of these crimes has been provided to Ecuador’s courts and prosecutors, but authorities there have taken no corrective actions. In the United States, however, no less than eight federal judges have found that the trial in Ecuador has been marred by the fraud and misconduct of the plaintiffs’ representatives. And an international Tribunal presiding in the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague has ordered Ecuador to take all measures at its disposal to suspend enforcement of the Lago Agrio judgment within and without Ecuador. Chevron does not believe that the Ecuador ruling is enforceable in any court that observes the rule of law. The company will continue to seek to hold accountable the perpetrators of this fraud,” said Chevron.
PetrolWorld 05012012
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