In the News
Bloomberg – Ecuador Judge Told by Court to Stay on Chevron Case
Wednesday, September 23rd 2009
“Ecuador Judge Told by Court to Stay on Chevron Case”
Bloomberg, September 23, 2009
“The Ecuadorean judge who stepped down from a $27 billion environmental lawsuit against Chevron Corp. after the company accused him of bias should remain in charge of the case, a court in Ecuador ruled.
A request by Judge Juan Nunez to recuse himself from the Chevron lawsuit was “unfounded,” Judge Nicolas Zambrano said in a ruling yesterday. Like Nunez, Zambrano sits on the Nueva Loja Superior Court in Ecuador’s northeastern Sucumbios province.”
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Dow Jones – E-mails Released By Chevron In Ecuador Case Are Real-Lawyer
Tuesday, September 22nd 2009
“E-mails Released By Chevron In Ecuador Case Are Real-Lawyer”
Dow Jones, September 21, 2009
“San Ramon, Calif.-based Chevron released the e-mails earlier this month, saying that they outlined instructions to two businessmen – one from Ecuador and one from the U.S. – for the payment of a $3 million bribe to ruling party officials in exchange for a government contract to do clean-up in Ecuador’s Lago Agrio region. Such a contract would only be needed if the court rules against Chevron in the decades-long, multibillion-dollar litigation over contamination from oil production in the Amazon.”
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Law.com – Chevron’s Slugfest in Ecuador Shows No Sign of Slowing in the Late Rounds
Tuesday, September 15th 2009
“Chevron’s Slugfest in Ecuador Shows No Sign of Slowing in the Late Rounds”
Law.com, September 15, 2009
“A week ago Chevron was raising its arms in triumph after the presiding judge, Juan Nuñez, recused himself. Though the judge claimed he’d done nothing wrong, he acted days after Chevron posted a secretly recorded video to its Web site in which Nuñez seemed to acknowledge he already decided to rule against the company even though the trial hadn’t ended. A second recording allegedly showed a member of the country’s ruling party soliciting bribes in exchange for remediation contracts to be awarded after the verdict.”
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UPI – Chevron files motion to annul in Ecuador
Tuesday, September 15th 2009
“Chevron files motion to annul in Ecuador”
United Press International, September 14, 2009
“Judge Nunez is biased and has engaged in improper behavior while presiding over this case,” said Chevron in its annulment filing.”
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Examiner.com – Court corruption even a problem for big business
Tuesday, September 15th 2009
“Court corruption even a problem for big business”
Examiner.com, September 14, 2009
“”Chevron catches judge bribery scheme on tape.” The pathetic part is, when first I read the headline, I thought it was a story that took place in the U.S.A.”
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SFGate.com – ACORN, Ecuador, Chevron, and the hidden video camera
Monday, September 14th 2009
“ACORN, Ecuador, Chevron, and the hidden video camera”
By Zennie62 – SFGate.com City Brights, September 13, 2009
“I also think it’s a lot like the Chevron Ecuador case, where Ecuador Judge Juan Nunez was secretly caught on video in a meeting talking about the Chevron case and how he could rule and what the cost would be – $27 billion. Even though the Judge picked his words carefully, it was clear he knew about “that other thing” (because he used those words) which were the bribe arrangements where two environmental consultants would pay $3 million for the right to get a part of the remediation work the $27 billion was to pay for, in part.”
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Reuters – Ecuador says had no role in alleged bribery case
Saturday, September 12th 2009
“Ecuador says had no role in alleged bribery case”
Reuters, September 12, 2009
“Correa supports the plaintiffs, who accused Texaco of dumping billions of gallons of polluted water in the jungle for more than two decades before the company left Ecuador in the early 1990s. … ‘Of course I want our indigenous friends to win,’ Correa said on Saturday.”
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PRESS RELEASE – Chevron Seeks Annulment of Rulings by Ecuadorian Judge
Friday, September 11th 2009
SAN RAMON, Calif., Sept. 11, 2009 – Lawyers for Chevron Corp. (NYSE: CVX) have filed a motion with the Provincial Court of Sucumbios in Ecuador to annul all rulings made by the judge who last week stepped down from presiding over an environmental lawsuit against the company in Lago Agrio.
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Center for Security Policy – Is Ecuador’s lawsuit against Chevron ‘messianic’ justice?
Friday, September 11th 2009
“Is Ecuador’s lawsuit against Chevron ‘messianic’ justice?”
Center for Security Policy, September 11, 2009
“Unbeknownst to many, there is now a high stakes legal battle taking place between the Chevron Oil Company and the residents of Ecuador’s Amazonian area called Lago Agrio. The contention is that Chevron was responsible for environmental contamination actually caused by another oil company, Texaco, which operated in the area between 1964 and 1990. Chevron is facing the lawsuit because it purchased Texaco in 2001. Texaco had already pulled out of Ecuador in 1992, handing over their operations to Ecuador’s national company, Petroecuador. The suit was originally filed against the company in 1993 in a New York court as a class action suit, primarily on behalf of the private citizens affected by the pollution.”
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Los Angeles Times – Letter to the Editor – Pleading Chevron’s case
Friday, September 11th 2009
“Pleading Chevron’s case”
By Don Campbell, Chevron’s manager of external communications – Los Angeles Times, September 11, 2009
“Re “Chevron’s legal fireworks,” Editorial, Sept. 5
When a company comes into possession of evidence suggesting a crime, it is expected to turn over that evidence to law enforcement officials.
Chevron did this when it obtained and verified videos of political party operatives and the sitting judge discussing the ongoing trial against Chevron in Ecuador, and did so publicly to ensure transparency.
The evidence on the videotapes is difficult to dispute. Were such conduct to occur in the U.S., The Times would respond with outrage, and justifiably so. But for some reason, your editorial condemns Chevron for advising authorities of this corruption.
The judge has correctly agreed to step aside from our case, but this still leaves unanswered the troubling interference by President Rafael Correa’s political party and administration in the courts in Ecuador.
We are not alone in raising these issues, as the U.S. State Department, the World Bank and legions of Ecuadorean jurists all have reported that the Ecuadorean judiciary suffers from political and financial corruption. In this environment, Chevron cannot get a fair hearing.
”
Reuters – INTERVIEW-Ecuador could nationalize oil operations
Friday, September 11th 2009
“INTERVIEW-Ecuador could nationalize oil operations”
Reuters, September 10, 2009
“Ecuador could nationalize private oil operations in the country if the companies are found to have irregularities in their contracts with the state, Strategic Sectors Minister Galo Borja told Reuters on Thursday. The socialist government is seeking to renegotiate contracts with companies in order to take more control of the South American country’s natural resources.”
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Petroleum World – Corrupt to the Bone
Thursday, September 10th 2009
“Corrupt to the Bone”
Petroleum World, September 10, 2009
“It seems that corruption is rampant over the case of Chevron vs several Amazon communities fronting for the Ecuadorian Government. Obviously Judge Juan Nunez was cut in the act of negotiating bribe as Chevron show last week , but the participation in the whole dubious case of the court designated expert Richard Cabrera and Correa’s close adviser of Correa’s Alexis Mera are are very significant, even though Nunez consistently protected Cabrera from any sort of scrutiny, perhaps the media and authorities should focus on pair so we could get to the truth on this case.”
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Fox & Hounds Daily – Trashing Chevron in the Amazon Court – Part Deux
Wednesday, September 9th 2009
“Trashing Chevron in the Amazon Court – Part Deux”
By Judy Lloyd – Fox & Hounds Daily, September 9, 2009
“Bay Area newspapers have been a buzz over the past week regarding the latest video of Ecuador Judge Juan Nunez, the key legal figure in the Chevron Ecuador environmental damage case, who has been captured in a video stating that he plans to rule against the oil giant and for an award of $27 billion “more or less.”
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New York Post – Oily mess, unctuous lawyers
Wednesday, September 9th 2009
“Oily mess, unctuous lawyers”
New York Post, September 9, 2009
“The film does not come close to demonstrating that the lawsuit’s target, Chevron, is to blame for the pollution (Chevron acquired Texaco, which left the region 17 years ago as Ecuador’s state company took over), nor that the pollution is responsible for any of the diseases the lawyers blame on it, nor that the agreement Chevron signed with Ecuador releasing it from any future claims is invalid.”
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Petroleum World – Chevron presenting strong evidence of government corruption
Wednesday, September 9th 2009
“Chevron presenting strong evidence of government corruption”
Petroleum World, September 9, 2009
“Chevron has just released yet another set of evidence ( Chevron Post video…) concerning a bribe plot involving the judge of the cause, Juan Nuñez, plus a close adviser of president Rafael Correa. On the basis of this new evidence Chevron is requesting Ecuadorian authorities that an investigation into the bribery scheme should include the possible involvement of Correa’s legal adviser Alexis Mera in the plot and an investigation into the relationship between judge Nuñez and the court designated expert Richard Cabrera. Chevron presented new evidence including information on a Galveston, Texas bank account said to be used “to hold bribery payments.”
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Miami Herald – Opinion – Ecuador plays `dirty’
Tuesday, September 8th 2009
“Ecuador plays `dirty’”
Miami Herald – Opinion, September 8, 2009
“Some countries derive their legal system from the Magna Carta or the Napoleonic code, which clamped restrictions on royal fiats. Others rely on the Koran. And in Ecuador, the governing authority looks to Alice in Wonderland for legal standing. In the trial there of a $27 billion pollution lawsuit against Chevron, the courtroom echoes with the cry of the Queen of Hearts: “Sentence first — verdict later.””
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Dow Jones – Chevron Provides New Material In Alleged Bribe Scheme
Monday, September 7th 2009
“Chevron Provides New Material In Alleged Bribe Scheme”
Dow Jones, September 7, 2009
“Chevron Corp. (CVX) said Monday it delivered new material to Ecuadorean authorities that the company says helps show the involvement of ruling party officials in a bribery scheme related to a multi-billion-dollar environmental lawsuit.”
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Reuters – Chevron Offers Evidence in Ecuador Bribery Case
Monday, September 7th 2009
“Chevron Offers Evidence in Ecuador Bribery Case”
Reuters, September 7, 2009
“QUITO, Ecuador (Reuters) — The Chevron Corporation said Monday that it gave Ecuadorean authorities videos and e-mail messages it said provided evidence of a bribery scheme linked to a $27 billion environmental damages lawsuit against the oil company.”
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Petroleum World – In Ecuador, a drama unfolding: Government corruption working against Chevron?
Monday, September 7th 2009
“In Ecuador, a drama unfolding: Government corruption working against Chevron?”
Petroleum World, September 7, 2009
“In a new press release given by Chevron Oil Company in connection with the legal action currently in process against the company in Ecuador, its executive vice president Charles James welcomed news that the Prosecutor General of Ecuador would open an investigation of the evidence presented by the company, in which the judge in charge of the case is seen talking about the case in an improper manner, suggesting fraudulent behavior, and in which Mr. Alexis Mera, a legal advisor to Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa, is mentioned as playing a role in the maneuvers surrounding the action against the oil company. ”
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PRESS RELEASE – Chevron Provides Ecuador Authorities Evidence in Bribe Plot – Company says investigation should include judge, president’s adviser and Texas bank account
Monday, September 7th 2009
SAN RAMON, Calif., Sept. 7, 2009 – Lawyers for Chevron Corporation (NYSE: CVX) provided evidence to Ecuador authorities today, including video recordings and emails, to assist with the investigation of a $3 million bribe scheme associated with an environmental lawsuit against the company.
In a letter to Ecuador authorities, the company asked that several important points be examined by the investigation into the scheme, which implicated the judge hearing the case, as well as ruling party and government officials. The information provided today supports last week’s written notification to the government that video recordings existed that show discussions of a prejudged verdict against the company by the judge and details of how the bribe would work. (Videos, letters and emails are available on Chevron.com/ecuador and on youtube.com/texacoecuador.)
The letter requested:
* An investigation into the bribery scheme discussed in the videos and emails;
* An investigation into possible government involvement of Alexis Mera, legal adviser to the president of Ecuador, and other government officials said to be working to influence the outcome of the trial, including assisting the judge to write an opinion against Chevron;
* An investigation of transactions involving a bank account and the account holder at a bank in Galveston, Tex., which was to hold the bribe payments;
* An investigation into the relationship between Judge Juan Nunez and Richard Cabrera, who submitted a report to the court on the case that Chevron disputes. (The judge refused allow Chevron to depose Mr. Cabrera and denied Chevron’s attempt to obtain source materials and other alleged support for his recommendations);
* An investigation into any communication between any parties involved in the Lago Agrio suit (including the plaintiffs, the court, the presidency or any government entity) relating to the distribution, use or administration of any damages relating to the damages awarded by the Lago Agrio court.
