Beginning this week, counsel for Chevron Canada are asking the Ontario Superior Court to summarily dismiss the claims of a group of Ecuadorean plaintiffs. The plaintiffs ultimately wish the court to recognize and enforce an Ecuadorean judgment of $9.51-billion (U.S.) for alleged environmental damage in the Lago Agrio district of Ecuador’s jungle. The damage arose from an extraction initiative in which the corporation – then Texaco – was an operating partner with the government of Ecuador and which was then sold to the government in 1992 at an agreed price. After conducting an environmental cleanup that was certified by the agencies responsible for oversight, Texaco was released from any further liability in 1998. The Ecuadorean judgment was procured by demonstrably fraudulent means. Read more>>
