Petroecuador Responsible for Oil Field Infrastructure
The U.S. trial lawyers behind the environmental lawsuit in Ecuador consistently assert that Chevron, a company that has never operated in Ecuador, is somehow responsible for the current state of Petroecuador’s environmental mismanagement. Moreover, when confronted with the reality of Petroecuador’s reckless performance over the last two decades, the lawyers try to claim that Petroecuador’s pollution is Chevron’s responsibility because (as they put it) Petroecuador “inherited” a “flawed production system” from Texaco Petroleum.
The Latest ‘Crude’ Review, Wrong Like Most of The Others
But it’s not a class-action suit and it wasn’t filed by 30,000 Amazon tribespeople.
Even the Amazon Defense Coalition’s PR person, Karen Hinton, eventually admitted this basic fact — a basic fact that the Globe gets wrong.
Chevron Defends Use of Tapes by American With Felony Conviction
Chevron Corp., facing a $27 billion pollution lawsuit in Ecuador, said revelations that an American who secretly recorded the judge overseeing the case was convicted of a drug-smuggling conspiracy won’t affect its reliance on information in the recordings given to the company.
Chevron, the second-largest U.S. oil company, said Aug. 31 that California resident Wayne Hansen was an “American businessman” whose tape recordings of meetings in Ecuador in May and June show that the judge is biased against the company and may have been involved in a $3 million bribery scheme.
“The content of the tapes is what’s really egregious here,” Don Campbell, a Chevron spokesman, said in a phone interview.
Group attacks Chevron ally
Two months ago, Chevron released statements and videotapes provided by two men that it said cast doubt on the integrity of a court in Ecuador, where the company is fighting demands that it pay billions of dollars to fix damage done years ago by oil exploration in the Ecuadoran Amazon.
Cullen rejected the notion that Chevron had recruited Hansen to make the videotapes. “I’m going to go out and recruit someone for this job and I’m going to go out and get that guy? It’s baloney,” Cullen said. “We didn’t recruit Borja or Hansen. We didn’t put any words in their mouths. We didn’t give them a plan. We didn’t tell them what to do or say.”
Web of Influence Shows Financial, Political Ties of the Government of Ecuador, U.S. Attorneys and Their Efforts to Sway Justice in the Case Against Chevron in Ecuador
An elaborate series of relationships between the Ecuadorian government, U.S. trial lawyers and activist groups show that strong economic and political ties exist in their efforts to put pressure on a small rural courtroom in Lago Agrio, Ecuador, to find Chevron guilty in an environmental lawsuit.
Felon involved in clandestine videos in Ecuador
A man who made clandestine video recordings used to discredit Ecuador in a $27 billion oil contamination lawsuit is a convicted felon with a history of legal troubles, The Associated Press has learned.
Chevron Denies Role in Recording of Judge in Pollution Case
Chevron Corp. said it didn’t request or encourage an Ecuadorean contractor, who it later assisted with a stipend and housing, to meet with a judge presiding over a pollution lawsuit against the company.
“Chevron did not initiate or participate in the meetings and had no advance knowledge that they would occur,” Thomas Cullen, a lawyer for San Ramon-California-based Chevron, said in a letter dated Oct 26 to Ecuador Solicitor General Diego Garcia.
Massachusetts Congressman Blasts Chevron
“CRUDE” is not only the name of an anti-Chevron film by Joe Berlinger, but it aptly describes the behavior of ultra-liberal Rep. James McGovern (D-Mass.) during the film’s Washington, D.C., premier Friday at the E Street Theater.
A telling audio clip, courtesy Carter Wood at the Shop Floor blog, reveals how McGovern began by “licking the boots” of Luis Yanza and Steven R. Donziger, principals on the plaintiff’s side of the Amazon Defense Coalition’s $27 billion lawsuit against Chevron Corporation, before spreading more of the group’s lies and baseless accusations about the San Ramon, Calif.-based oil giant.
Against Chevron, the Strategy Has Always Been Political
The movie “Crude” was again used to promote the anti-Chevron cause last week when a Congressman and the U.S. trial lawyer appeared at a Washington, D.C. showing alongside the film’s director, Joe Berlinger. Their comments in the Q&A demonstrated again that the litigation against Chevron for its predecessor Texaco’s operations in Ecuador is a matter of politics and public relations — not law – designed to force the company into a settlement.
The latest Amazon Defense Coalition smear, Karen Hinton is at it again
Karen Hinton, paid Washington, DC based PR representative for the Amazon Defense Coalition, is leveling a new baseless accusation against bloggers who are raising legitimate questions about the organization’s lawsuit against Chevron.
What 30,000? Etc. It’s Still Not a Class-Action Lawsuit
In a response to our post (”What 30,000?“) debunking the claim that 30,000 Amazonian Indians have sued Chevron, the Amazon Defense Coalition’s PR person, Karen Hinton, writes:
Most of the time I don’t bother to read this blog, much less respond. But like so many others, this post is way over the top. The lawsuit is a class-action lawsuit. That means it covers any and all people living in the Texaco concession area who have been harmed by the contamination. As with class-action lawsuits filed in this country, names of specific individuals are included in the lawsuit but that does not mean the lawsuit is limited to those individuals.
We’ve read the lawsuit. The plaintiffs are 48 Ecuadorians. There’s no mention of a “class” or a citation of the Ecuadorian law that defines class-action litigation. No judge has certified the class, that is, recognized anyone’s standing to sue for damages on behalf of the supposed 30,000 Amazonians.
CNN’s Sanchez Blasts America First, Asks Questions Later in Chevron/Ecuador Dispute
Features left-wing eco-activist Kerry Kennedy’s attack on oil giant; postpones Chevron defense until after commercial break.
If MSNBC is the “place for liberal politics,” CNN is the place for latent America bashing, especially its corporations.
On his Oct. 22 CNN program, Rick Sanchez wore his American guilt like a badge of honor and said he wasn’t going to stand for America to look bad because of what a corporation had been accused of doing, in this case Chevron (NYSE:CVX), whether they did it or not.
Myth 5: Texaco Petroleum is solely responsible for the problems in Ecuador’s Oriente region
Chevron is being blamed for a situation that is the sole responsibility of the Ecuadorian government and Petroecuador.
Petroecuador, Ecuador’s state-owned oil company, was the majority partner in the consortium with Texaco Petroleum. Today, Petroecuador still owns and operates the oilfields in the former Concession area as well as other fields in the Amazon. Petroecuador took over consortium operations in 1990 and became the sole owner of the consortium fields and installations when Texaco Petroleum’s concession contract expired in 1992. Since that time, Petroecuador has developed a widely acknowledged record of operational and environmental mismanagement, due to, among other things, widespread corruption, a lack of investment in, or proper maintenance of its equipment and installations, and numerous spills.
Petroecuador’s environmental record is alarming. The company has been responsible for more than 1,400 spills between 2000 and 2008. According to media reports, Petroecuador has spilled over 4.4 million gallons of oil at oil production and storage sites and along its various pipelines.
Ecuador Judge Rejects Chevron Request To Annul Recent Rulings
A new local judge in Ecuador’s region of Lago Agrio rejected Chevron Corp.’s (CVX) request to annul all rulings in a multi-billion dollar environmental lawsuit made by the judge’s predecessor, who recently recused himself from the case amid a scandal.
Judge Nicolas Zambrano officially took over the Chevron case on Wednesday, after a provincial court accepted the recusal of judge Juan Nunez. Nunez withdrew from the case after Chevron released videos in August that it says implicated the judge in improper dealings. Nunez, though, has denied any wrongdoing, and said the videos were doctored. Chevron maintains that the videos are authentic and haven’t been manipulated.
Ecuador Delays Picking Arbitrator In Chevron Case
Despite a looming deadline, Ecuador hasn’t chosen an arbitrator for the claim that Chevron Corp. (CVX) filed last month against it with the Permanent Court of Arbitration in the Hague, and will take some time to appoint a representative.
“The deadline to appoint our representative is today. We are analyzing names and the process could take some weeks,” a high government official told Dow Jones Newswires Thursday.
Myth 4: Oil contamination in water is the biggest health threat facing the Oriente
There is no question that the people of the Oriente region of Ecuador face a series of challenges regarding health in their communities. However, they are being deceived by the trial lawyers and activists who have brought this lawsuit.
The major health concerns in the Oriente region are not the result of oil operations, but are related to a lack of water treatment infrastructure, a lack of sufficient sanitation infrastructure and inadequate access to medical care.
The Merits of ‘Crude’: Trial Lawyer Excesses on Display
The publicity machine has geared up for the umpteenth premiere of the anti-Chevron movie, “Crude,” this time at the E Street Cinema Friday just a few blocks down from NAM-HQ. Joe Berlinger, the director, will be at the premiere, perhaps proclaiming his objective distance as he did in this San Francisco Chronicle interview:
I have maintained throughout the entire production period and release an arms-length relationship with everybody involved, so that the film is treated as a piece of objective journalism—because it is.
Berlinger will be appearing at the DC showing with Luis Yanza, an Ecuadorian activist, and Steven Donziger, the American trial lawyer who is directing the lawsuit.
Now that’s objective distance!
Big oil stains the Amazon in the documentary film ‘Crude’
For the indigenous people of Ecuador’s blemished Amazon, it doesn’t matter whether Chevron is to blame, or Texaco, or the state-owned company Petroecuador. All that matters is that the kids have rashes, the chickens are dying, the people have cancer and the earth around many of their villages is soaked with oil.
Myth 3: The judicial system in Ecuador is fair and independent
The judicial system in Ecuador is not fair and is far from independent.
Since assuming office in January 2007, President Correa has consolidated his power over all of Ecuador, including its political, financial, and media institutions:
Correa consolidated political power when the Constituent Assembly, which is dominated by his political party, Alianza PAIS, drafted a new constitution, dissolved the National Congress and announced that its decisions were superior to any other ruling by the judicial system.
He threatened that “[j]udges and tribunals that process any action contrary to the decisions of the Constituent Assembly shall be dismissed from their post and subject to corresponding prosecution” and has since made clear that this threat extends to judges that rule against state interests.
Chevron Responds to Kerry Kennedy Attacks
In a telephone press conference today, Kerry Kennedy accused the Chevron Corporation of causing an ecological disaster in Ecuador. According to Chevron, Kennedy is incorrectly blaming Chevron subsidiary Texaco for problems caused by PetroEcuador, the oil company owned and run by the Ecuadoran government.
Chevron Spokesman Kent Robertson told The Minority Report Blog that Chevron itself has never actually operated in Ecuador. From 1972 to 1992, Texaco held 37.5% equity in a joint venture with PetroEcuador, producing oil in the Oriente region of Ecuador. According to Robertson, “Texaco was a minority partner in the consortium. It was governed and regulated by the government of Ecuador.” Chevron acquired Texaco in 2001.
Myth 2: There have been over 1,400 cancer deaths as a result of oil pollution
The cancer claims made by Richard Cabrera is one of the most shocking examples of the absurdity of his work. Cabrera, a mining engineer with no experience or training in oilfield remediation work, was appointed by the court to assess possible environmental damage.
This is an environmental remediation case, and none of the 48 named plaintiffs have claims for cancer or related damages.
But Cabrera assessed more than $9.5 billion in damages for “excess cancer deaths,” yet failed to identify a single victim or provide any corroborating documentation, such as death certificates or medical diagnoses.
Trial lawyers seeking a major payday don’t often want the facts to get in the way of a good story
And they’ll keep telling their story over and over again with more and more embellishment until someone either confronts them with the truth or pays them to stop.
Here is one of the major myths the US-based trial lawyers and environmental activist groups have spun in a naked attempted to tarnish Chevron’s reputation in the U.S. and pressure the company into an unjust settlement in the lawsuit against Chevron in Ecuador:
Myth 1: Chevron is responsible for $27 billion worth of damages to the Amazon.
The $27 billion assessment against Chevron was concocted by Richard Cabrera, a mining engineer with no experience or training in oilfield remediation work.
Will Wray ‘10: Crude justice
The plaintiff’s case is hopeless. The Amazon Defense Coalition is clinging to “Crude” as a last ditch effort to embarrass Chevron into paying a handsome settlement.
Claims of Indigenous Extinction in Amazon Region Proven False
In yet another fabrication put forth to mislead the public, the American trial lawyers behind the Chevron case in Ecuador and their activist NGO partners continue to claim that the indigenous tribes in the former consortium region are “near extinct.” However, this claim could not be any further from the truth.
More Smoke from the paid Amazon Defense Coalition Bloggers
The folks at the anti-Chevron blog The Chevron Pit, who describe themselves as “the team suing Chevron” a.k.a., hacks funded by trial lawyers, were at it again this week. In a well written, but utterly misleading article full of lies, the paid anti-Chevron bloggers personally attack Carter Wood for exposing the only tools they have: character assassination and manufactured outrage.
Lobbyist’s Disclosure Documents Raise Serious Questions in Chevron-Ecuador Lawsuit
Today, I offer evidence suggesting Ben Barnes, lobbyist for the plaintiff in a lawsuit that could cost San Ramon, Calif.-based Chevron $27 billion, has been reading this blog. It takes a while to explain, but I think you’ll find it offers worthwhile and relevant information about the Chevron lawsuit now being tried in a thoroughly-corrupt Ecuadoran legal system.
Let the Personal Attacks Continue
The activist/trial lawyer combine driving the $27 billion lawsuit against Chevron loves to wield the personal attack, demonizing the company, its employees and anybody else who argues that the litigation is baseless. At first blush the attacks look like an attempt to cow critics, but by now everybody has read Saul Alinsky — pick a target, freeze it, personalize it, and polarize it — and once recognized as tactics, the attacks lose their power to intimidate.
Plaintiffs’ Lawyers’ Statements on Groundwater Contamination Misleading and Incorrect
In virtually every public statement and news release, the plaintiffs’ lawyers and their activist NGO partners claim that the remediated sites that Texaco was responsible for under the 1998 Remediation Action Plan (RAP) “contain cancer-causing toxins at levels hundreds of times higher than U.S. and Ecuadorian law allows.”
Hidden Deal in Ecuador Case: Lawyers suing Chevron Strike Agreement That Spares Petroecuador From Litigation and Ensures Government Support
Information has been recently uncovered that suggests the plaintiffs’ lawyers in Chevron Corporation’s Ecuadorian lawsuit promised the Quito government they would not sue Ecuador’s state oil company Petroecuador over environmental damage in the Amazon if officials backed their litigation against the U.S. company.
Blogger says NY Times uses misleading photo to blame Chevron in Ecuador case
Two bloggers, Carter Wood of ShopFloor.org and Jeff Poor of Business & Media Institute are pointing a finger at the New York Times for using a photo and a story that seems to blame Chevron for environmental damage from oil production in Ecuador. Chevron has not operated in Ecuador since 1992. It turned over its production to the state-run company Petroecuador.
NY Times Plays Photo Tricks to Condemn Chevron in Ecuador Dispute
In the Oct. 9 issue of the Times, an article by Simon Romero and Clifford Krauss examined the events in a decade-and-a-half-long legal battle between a left-wing environmental group, supposedly representing the people of Ecuador, and Chevron over pollution allegedly left behind by Texaco.
However, the Times took liberty with a photo of “murky” polluted water with its Oct. 9 story, one that could lead a reader to Chevron is really at fault for pollution in Ecuador. The photograph, taken for the Times by Moises Saman, was captioned “a pool of oil in Lago Agrio, an Ecuadorean town in the Amazon where Texaco left contamination.”
What Photo Do You Use to Illustrate Misleading Journalism?
The New York Times features a longish piece today about the litigation brought by a New York trial lawyer and the Amazon Defense Coalition against Chevron over claims of environmental damage in Ecuador, “Ecuador Oil Pollution Case Only Grows Murkier.”
Well, maybe it’s murky because the paper doesn’t bother to report basic facts, like who actually brought the lawsuit. It’s as if the $27 billion in legal claims just appeared.
Ecuador Oil Pollution Case Only Grows Murkier
The multibillion-dollar legal case between Amazon peasants and Chevron over oil pollution in Ecuador’s rain forest keeps unfolding more like a mystery thriller than a battle of briefs.
Ever since the oil giant released videos in August that were secretly taped by two businessmen who seemed to have the ambition of feasting off the expected $27 billion in damages sought, Ecuadorean officials and Chevron have accused each other of gross improprieties, including espionage.
Coalition of Prominent Business Associations Voice Serious Concern Over Continued Deterioration of the Rule of Law in Ecuador
On October 8th, six major U.S. business organizations- Business Roundtable, National Association of Manufacturers (NAM), U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Nation Foreign Trade Council (NFTC), Emergency Committee for American Trade (ECAT) and the U.S. Council for International Business (USCIB) sent a letter to key Congressional offices and the Obama Administration calling for the cancelation of Ecuador’s trade preferences under the Andean Trade Preferences Act (ATPA).
Recent Surge in Lawsuits Filed Against Ecuador Underscores Government Interference, Politically Tainted Judicial System in Chevron Case
A recent article in El Comercio, a major Ecuadorian newspaper, exposes a telling increase in the number of lawsuits filed against the country of Ecuador. These lawsuits are being put forward by foreign companies that have invested millions in the South American nation.
It was not until 2001 that the country of Ecuador was sued for the first time by a foreign company. By 2008, the year after President Rafael Correa took office, a large number of foreign companies began to file lawsuits. Currently, Ecuador is 2nd in the world in terms of pending international arbitration claims against the country; so much so that the cumulative sum of the 11 pending lawsuits would now equal nearly one-half of the country’s budget of approximately $21 billion.
Berlinger Bombs at Box Office with Crude
Don’t believe the hype being spread by Amazon Watch and the Amazon Defense Coalition about Crude. As of October 4th, Crude’s box office ranking has plummeted from its opening “high” of 64 down to 94 and is currently being shown on only 4 screens – down from a whopping 6 nationwide! After four weeks the movie has just grossed $81,257.
Crud
“Crude” ostensibly relates the story around a lawsuit filed by U.S. trial lawyers against Chevron for pollution caused during the operations in Ecuador by Texaco decades ago. (Chevron bought Texaco in 2001.) And “Crude” is a well-made, even compelling movie. Too bad it’s only loosely related to the truth.
Chevron Ecuador case has new judge; Nicolas Zambrano
Ecuador’s lawsuit (which it can now be called officially since Ecuador would get any award money Chevron would have to pay) has a new judge after Judge Juan Nunez officially stepped down in the wake of the alleged video bribery scandal. He is Judge Nicolas Zambrano.
Chevron Ecuador Lawsuit Blog: Amazon Defense Coalition PR Follies
When a credible organization publishes a press release that is later shown to contain inaccurate information, it releases a correction or retraction to inform the public of its error. So what does the Amazon Defense Coalition do when its press releases are proven to contain inaccurate information? Absolutely nothing.
And when the Amazon Defense Coalition’s blog posts articles containing baseless accusations that are later proven false, do they admit their mistake? No, in fact ADC’s blog deletes all comments by readers challenging the organization’s baseless accusations while leaving the original inaccurate blog post on its website. Does this sound like a credible organization to anyone?
Chevron claims denial of justice in investment-treaty claim against Ecuador
The world’s second largest oil company, Chevron Corporation, has served the government of Ecuador with a notice of arbitration for alleged breaches of the United States-Ecuador Bilateral Investment Treaty.
Chevron’s claim relates to a multi-billion dollar lawsuit lodged in an Ecuadorian court, in which Ecuadorian citizens seek compensation for health and environmental harm in connection with oil-drilling in the Amazon.
Ecuador probes Chevron bribe charge
Ecuadorean authorities said on Tuesday they were looking into accusations by Chevron that the judge involved in a $27 billion (16.7 billion pound) environmental lawsuit against the U.S. oil company is guilty of misconduct and involvement in a bribery scheme.
New Ecuadorean judge named to hear Chevron case
A court in the Ecuadorean jungle region where giant U.S. oil producer Chevron Corp (CVX.N) faces a $27 billion environmental damages suit has named a new judge to hear the case, after the previous one quit amid a bribery scandal.
Chevron Swings Back at Ecuador
In essence, by filing the suit, Chevron is requesting arbitration through a procedure established by a United Nations commission specializing in international trade law. That procedure is separate from the core lawsuit, although under the 1997 pact, Ecuador is required to recognize arbitration as binding.
In blow to plaintiffs, judge is replaced in Chevron pollution lawsuit in Ecuador
An Ecuadorean court dealt the plaintiffs a setback Tuesday in a $27 billion environmental contamination lawsuit against Chevron Corp., accepting the presiding judge’s request to be removed from the case.
Judge Juan Evangelista Nunez asked to be recused earlier this month so the government could investigate Chevron’s allegations that he was involved in a bribery scheme.
Pablo Fajardo continues to misrepresent brother’s death, lies about Chevron’s involvement
Whatever the case may be, official police reports, investigations and news reports lack any suggestion that Texaco (Chevron) was involved. Fajardo himself admitted that Chevron had no role in these events. Nonetheless, Fajardo continues to make misleading public statements about his brother’s murder and Chevron’s involvement.
Chevron Asks Court to Remove Ecuador Judge From Pollution Case
Chevron Corp., the second-largest U.S. oil company, asked a court in Ecuador to remove the judge presiding over a $27 billion environmental lawsuit against the company there, saying he is biased.
Echoing allegations it first made Aug. 31 about alleged judicial misconduct, Chevron claimed Judge Juan Nunez was involved in a bribery scheme to steer government contracts and disclosed his intention to rule against the company before the case was completed, according to a document Chevron said it filed yesterday in court in Lago Agrio, Ecuador.
Chevron goes on the attack in Ecuador
Chevron argues that this lawsuit represents an attempt by the Ecuadorian government to avoid the environmental obligations of its state-owned company. After the Texaco contract ended and after a release from further obligations was extended to this company by the Ecuadorian government, the state-owned company, PetroEcuador, continued operations in the area and kept drilling oil wells. In fact, PetroEcuador has now drilled more than 400 wells in the area, more than Texaco ever did and has contributed significantly to environmental damages due to its low quality of operations. Chevron argues that the Ecuadorian judicial system is no longer fair and autonomous and is acting under the influence of the executive power. President Correa, Chevron further argues, has publicly committed to support the plaintiffs. This support, by the way, has been open and is well documented. Other allegations by Chevron are related to the murky activities of the Attorney General office of Ecuador, that has been conspiring with plaintiffs’ lawyers to change the integrity of the contracts signed with Texaco in 1995 and 1998 and with the illegal behavior of the judge, who has been found, in video and tape recordings, to be prejudiced against the company.
Remarks the Amazon Defense Coalition doesn’t want you to Read
On September 18th, the Amazon Defense Coalition blog published an article titled, “More Smoke from Chevron Bloggers.” Bloggers accused of being paid by Chevron in the article, including myself, fought back and by September 24th, the Amazon Defense Coalition blog completely deleted our comments from the article.
Chevron Files International Arbitration Against the Government of Ecuador
“As has been widely recognized, the government of Ecuador has seriously diminished the independence and integrity of its own judiciary. The government is using the legal process in Lago Agrio to avoid the environmental obligations of its state-owned oil company,” said Hewitt Pate, Chevron’s vice president and general counsel. “Because Ecuador’s judicial system is incapable of functioning independently of political influence, Chevron has no choice but to seek relief under the treaty between the United States and Ecuador.”
The current Ecuador lawsuit is an effort to force Chevron to pay for Petroecuador’s own misdeeds. In collusion with trial lawyers suing Chevron, the government of Ecuador has violated its contracts with Texaco Petroleum as well as protections afforded to investors under the United States-Ecuador Bilateral Investment Treaty:
• Ecuador’s President has publicly committed to support the plaintiffs;
• Representatives of the Attorney General’s office have conspired with plaintiffs’ lawyers to undermine the integrity of the 1995 and 1998 contracts;
• Ecuador’s Prosecutor General has manufactured illegitimate criminal indictments against Chevron counsel, and
• The judge presiding over the trial has publicly revealed his bias and pre-judgment of the case in media interviews and recorded meetings with individuals who had been solicited by officials of Ecuador’s ruling political party to pay a bribe in exchange for the award of contracts to be funded with the proceeds of an anticipated verdict against Chevron.
He’s back – Judge Núñez Reinstated to Preside over Chevron/Ecuador Case
In yet another twist in the Chevron case in Ecuador, Judge Juan Núñez has been reinstated as the presiding Judge in the Lago Agrio court.
The U.S. State Department, in its Investment Climate Statement on Ecuador released in February 2009, has found that Ecuador’s “courts are often susceptible to outside pressure and bribes. Neither Congressional oversight nor internal judicial branch mechanisms have shown a consistent capacity to effectively investigate and discipline allegedly corrupt judges.”
Should Judge Núñez continue to preside over the case, it would further validate the State Department’s findings and reinforce that the rule of law in Ecuador has been compromised.
Practicing the New McCarthyism: Hinton Communications, Amazon Defense Coalition, Amazon Watch
The Big Lie: accuse anyone raising questions about the case against Chevron in Ecuador of being a “paid” blogger for Chevron.
First, the hypocrisy here is overwhelming. The people spreading this lie are Amazon Watch’s campaign coordinator Han Shan and communications manager Nick Magel, as well as somebody writing for the Amazon Defense Coalition Blog. Karen Hinton, Amazon Defense Coalition’s spokesperson also pushes this lie in an attempt to discredit Amazon Defense Coalition’s detractors. The New McCarthyists say that everything the “paid” bloggers write can be dismissed because they are getting paid by Chevron to blog. So by their own definition, anything written by Han Shen, Nick Magel and Karen Hinton should also be dismissed because they are getting paid to promote Amazon Defense Coalition’s case against Chevron.
Chevron files claim against Ecuador
Chevron, which has in the past exposed some fraudulent claims by people who claimed they had cancer when they didn’t, has also presented evidence of bias and corruption by a judge overseeing the case in Ecuador. But it hasn’t ever succeeded in having all the claims against it thrown out.
Now Chevron says the government of Ecuador is “exploiting the ongoing lawsuit against Chevron” and that it hasn’t complied with contracts it signed with Texaco in the past relating to such legal claims.
Chevron takes Ecuador fight to arbitrators
Chevron noted in filing for arbitration that in February 2009, the US Department of State released its Investment Climate Statement for Ecuador, which noted “systemic weakness and susceptibility to political or economic pressures in the rule of law constitute the most important problem faced by US companies investing in or trading with Ecuador.’’
Chevron takes Ecuador fight to trade arbitrators
Three weeks ago, Chevron accused the judge in the case of being involved in a $3 million bribery scheme and offered secretly videotaped footage as evidence that led to an Ecuadorean investigation.
Claiming Ecuador’s government has violated a bilateral U.S.-Ecuador investment treaty, Chevron said on Wednesday an arbitration proceeding had commenced before the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague under United Nations trade law.
“Because Ecuador’s judicial system is incapable of functioning independently of political influence, Chevron has no choice but to seek relief under the treaty,” Hewitt Pate, Chevron’s recently appointed general counsel, said in a company statement.
Chevron Files Suit Against Ecuador
Chevron Corp. is stepping up its offensive in its long-running legal battle in Ecuador, suing Ecuador’s government under international trade law.
In its filing, Chevron argues Ecuador’s government is responsible for any environmental damage and should pay any penalties assessed in the lawsuit, which could total $27 billion, according to a court-appointed expert. Chevron also asks that arbitrators force Ecuador’s government to pay the company’s legal fees and to award “moral damages” due to the government’s alleged interference in the case, intimidation of Chevron representatives and other “outrageous and illegal conduct.”
Amazon Defense Coalition Gets It Wrong — Again
Amazon Defense Coalition spokesperson Karen Hinton has admitted that several accusations made in a recent press release are false.
On Sept. 9, Hinton issued a press release on behalf of the Amazon Defense Coalition accusing Wayne Hansen, one of the individuals who videotaped meetings in Ecuador between himself, Judge Juan Nunez and other purported political operatives discussing how Chevron will lose the trial and any subsequent appeals, of having a past relationship with Chevron. Chevron had previously stated that Hansen had no ties to the company.
Despite that, the press release headline stated, “American Businessman Wayne Hansen Has Ties to Chevron in Bribery Scheme, Investigation Finds.” The release claimed the Amazon Defense Coalition had found several pieces of “evidence,” gathered in an “investigation” that proved a link between Chevron and Hansen.
“Apparently that’s not him,” Hinton admitted to the reporter
The Upstream article continued: “When asked if she (Hinton) had any proof of a link she replied: ‘No, not at this point.’”
The story also said, “Karen Hinton said she had found information about a Wayne Hansen on the internet and had not independently verified it before making the claim.”
Chevron’s Blog on Ecuador Lawsuit: Over 400 New Wells Drilled By Petroecuador Since 1990
Petroecuador, Ecuador’s state-owned oil company, which has a record of environmental mismanagement, continues to drill wells and dig new waste oil pits in the concession area developed in a consortium with Texaco Petroleum.
Petroecuador has realized more than $70 billion in revenues over the course of its operations. Very little of those funds have been reinvested to maintain their equipment to prevent spills and remediate pits, or to help the local communities. Instead most of the profits went to the government and toward drilling new wells.
Amazon Defense Coalition Blog / Hinton Communications Repeats Lies Disproven Months Ago
In a recent statement from Amazon Defense Coalition’s blog about “bloggers paid by Chevron” the organization said, “although we don’t have proof that he is paid by Chevron, Alex Thorne spends an inordinate amount of time blogging and tweeting for the oil company all over the place.” Listing me as a “paid blogger” and then saying that they don’t actually have any “proof,” is a perfect example of the pr tactics used by Karen Hinton, Amazon Defense Coalitions’ hired pr consultant, to attack the credibility of people raising legitimate questions about the case against Chevron in Ecuador. Just Google “Hinton Communications,” and you’ll find plenty of information proving that Karen Hinton continually releases unfounded, false and misleading statements, not only about the Chevron lawsuit, but also about people raising reasonable questions concerning her PR tactics.
Crude Falsehoods
Falsehoods upon falsehoods are at the core of the legal shakedown against Chevron by U.S. trial lawyers, environmental activists and the Ecuadorian government, aided by an uncritical media. We see another round of unquestioningly repeated falsehoods in the recent coverage of “Crude,” the anti-Chevron movie now being released around the country.
Amazon Watch is wrong: Ecuador to get 90 percent of Chevron damage award
Amazon Watch is wrong! In my previous blog post, I issued the argument proving that the Government of Ecuador was so involved in the “Aguinda v. Chevron Texaco” lawsuit that even though they were not officially a listed party, they could be named a party in court if the challenge to their status was presented.
Now, investigative blogger Bob McCarty has revealed that Ecuador is indeed a party to the case.
According to McCarty’s blog post , Washington Pesantez, Ecuador’s Prosecutor General, said 90 percent of the $27 billion award would go to Ecuador if the court case was resolved against Chevron for that amount.
This week, Amazon Watch emailed and emailed about this, and tried to say there was only one view of the case – their own – and that because my opinion differed from Amazon Watch’s so-called “facts,” I should be corrected by SFGate.com editors.
Proving Amazon Watch, Others Wrong Too Easy
Sources close to the case tell me that, amidst the furor over Chevron’s release of video tapes that appear to implicate Ecuadoran government officials — including President Rafael Correa and Juan Nunez, the judge who was hearing the case but has since recused himself — in a $3 million bribery scheme, Pesantez held a press conference Sept. 4 in his Quito office.
During that press conference, Pesantez said a number of amazing things, one of which stands out: he stated that 90 percent of the $27 billion award pending against Chevron would go to the government of Ecuador. To understand exactly what he said, read the transcript of the prosecutor general’s press conference in English or Spanish.
Amazon Watch claims Ecuador’s not a party to Chevron lawsuit? Think again!
President Correa is careful to publicly say that the lawsuit is “private” as in its not filed by the government of Ecuador. But in practice his actions – and those of other political operatives – prove that the Ecuadorian government is very much involved in the lawsuit and could be identified as a party to it in court.
And if one needs another example of Ecuador’s involvement and why I and others recognize it as a party to this case, I point to the now famous set of hidden camera videos. The one that refers to President Correa’s sister as the one of the recipients of the “bribe” of $3 million for two environmental consultants to get work from the then-anticipated $27 billion award against Chevron.
The legal battle obscures the real issue of poor economic development in Ecuador and of a country that’s not getting its petrodollars or development investment to the people who need it the most, yet participating in the harm of the region of the country where they live.
Ecuador is trying to play both sides of the political economic fence. It wants to gain from a court victory against Chevron but not antagonize the oil industry with an officially public government lawsuit.
It’s the perfect “head fake” politics of of the brilliant President Correa, using American activists to do his political dirty work, while leaving the Ecuadorian Amazon region 65 percent zoned for oil production and initiating a government takeover of privately held oil production. Regardless of words, in reality Ecuador’s a party to the lawsuit, alright. Believe it.
Joe Berlinger’s “CRUDE” film Supporting the Chevron Ecuador Lawsuit
Berlinger’s latest film explores the $27 billion lawsuit against Chevron brought by the Amazon Defense Coalition (ADC) for alleged environmental contamination. The film opened in New York on September 9th, and will continue its cross-country tour to Las Angeles on September 18th, San Francisco on September 25th and then opening in 30 other cities around the country.
The lawsuit is the largest of its kind in history and quickly becoming the largest circus on the planet. On September 4th Juan Nunez, the Ecuadorian judge presiding over the case, recused himself just four days after it was revealed that he was involved in a bribery scheme in which he would have received at least $1 million for ruling against Chevron. Other financial beneficiaries of the scheme included Ecuadorian government officials and the plaintiffs. As Steven Donziger, the lead attorney for the plaintiffs said in Berlinger’s film, “Ecuador, you know, this is how the game is played, it’s dirty.”
Chevron’s Slugfest in Ecuador Shows No Sign of Slowing in the Late Rounds
A knockout? A knockdown? Either way, the plaintiffs seemed glassy-eyed and wobbly. They issued an uncharacteristically subdued expression of confidence that the trial would continue with a new judge.
First, the Wayne Hansen the plaintiffs described is the wrong guy, he says. The correct one has no ties to Chevron. “This is a perfect example of the tactics employed by the other side,” he says. “They will say and do anything to change the topic of conversation.”
Chevron paid for Borja and his family to flee, Robertson says, because they were in danger. The government of Ecuador, on the defensive, has criticized the witnesses and the allegations. As evidence, he points to correspondence with government officials that Chevron has posted on its Web site. The company will consider paying the two witnesses’ legal expenses, Robertson adds, because “essentially, these guys are whistleblowers. Traditionally there would be protections for whistleblowers. But in this instance there are not. And the government of Ecuador is persecuting everyone who brought this scandal to light.”
The real issues, he says, are not the witnesses. “You’ve got a judge who’s been compromised. And you’ve got a bribery scheme that would seem to implicate the highest levels of the Ecuadorean government. The people who want to talk about Mr. Borja and Mr. Hansen the most are people who seem to have something to hide.”
Chevron files motion to annul in Ecuador
Lawyers for Chevron Corp. filed a motion in Ecuadorian courts to annul all rulings made by a judge involved in a $3 million scheme against the company.
Chevron says it has evidence showing a judge involved in a lawsuit against the supermajor, Juan Nunez, was involved in bribes with prosecutors.
“Judge Nunez is biased and has engaged in improper behavior while presiding over this case,” said Chevron in its annulment filing.
Its evidence in the case also show representatives allegedly from the Alianza PAIS ruling party in Ecuador seeking $3 million in bribes in exchange for environmental remediation contracts following the verdict.
Chevron further contends that environmental reports filed by Richard Cabrera, a mining engineer with no apparent experience in the oil sector, were invalid. Chevron says Cabrera conducted no water samples, inflated remediation costs and made unsubstantiated cancer claims in an environmental lawsuit against the company in Lago Agrio.
Charles James, executive vice president at Chevron, said he welcomed a decision by the prosecutor general to open a formal investigation into the claims.
“We hope that his investigation will be thorough, independent and transparent, and that he makes his findings public,” he said recently.
Ecuador President Denies Government Intervention In Chevron Case
QUITO -(Dow Jones)- Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa over the weekend denied accusations by Chevron Corp. (CVX) that his political party was involved in an alleged bribery scheme linked to a lawsuit against the California-based oil company.
Chevron released recordings last month that it claims show Judge Juan Nunez, who oversaw the Lago Agrio court where the trial is being held, affirming to two businessmen that he would hold the company accountable for environmental damages.
Other material, including videos and e-mails, show alleged undue influence of Ecuadorian party officials in the $27 billion lawsuit, the company says.
Meanwhile, Chevron has said that it is confident that the videos are authentic and haven’t been manipulated.
Over the weekend, Chevron filed a motion with the Lago Agrio court to annul all rulings made by the Judge Nunez.
“Judge Nunez is biased and has engaged in improper behavior while presiding over this case,” said the motion. “Judge Nunez’s acts are expressly prohibited by the Constitution and the law, and therefore, constitute a flagrant violation of Chevron’s rights.”
UPDATE: Chevron Provides New Material In Alleged Bribe Scheme
The material contains email correspondence between alleged party officials and two businessmen seeking a government contract related to decades-old environmental damage in the South American country’s Lago Agrio region, for which Chevron is currently being sued.
In the correspondence, reviewed by Dow Jones Newswires, an alleged party official provides one of the businessmen, former local Chevron contractor Diego Borja, with a bank-account number in a Galveston, Texas, bank. The email dates from late June, shortly after the businessmen recorded a meeting with a man whom Chevron says is named Carlos Patricio Garcia, an official with Ecuador’s ruling party Alianza PAIS. In that meeting, Garcia asked for a $3 million bribe, according to videos released by Chevron last week.
Another email, which appears to be from Garcia and which was sent in August, shows concern about not hearing back from Borja. “You’ve got me worried because I haven’t gotten a reply,” Garcia allegedly writes in the email.
Garcia appears to have granted interviews to local reporters representing himself as a party official. But despite attempts – including a visit to a political action office where Garcia said in a radio interview he worked – he couldn’t be reached for comment.
Ecuador plays `dirty’
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.”
Chevron says gives Ecuador evidence in bribery case
- E-mails, video evidence handed over
- Chevron calls for probe of government officials
QUITO, Sept 7 (Reuters) – Chevron Corp on Monday presented Ecuador’s government with video tapes and e-mails it said provided evidence of a bribery scheme linked to a $27 billion environmental damages lawsuit against the U.S. oil company.
The judge hearing the case, Juan Nunez, last week recused himself from the case just days after Chevron handed Ecuadorean and U.S. authorities a secretly recorded video of the magistrate talking of ruling against Chevron later this year.
Chevron Provides Ecuador Authorities Evidence in Bribe Plot
Company says investigation should include judge, president’s adviser and Texas bank account
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.)
Examiner Editorial: Chevron video reveals corruption in Ecuador
This long, convoluted lawsuit hardly matches the stereotype of big, greedy corporations heedlessly despoiling Mother Earth. The suit never alleges that Chevron itself ever even drilled for oil in Ecuador. There were at one time as many as 400 open pits filled with tons of untreated oil sludge that filtered into jungle rivers and streams, but Texaco did those before quitting its Ecuadorian operations in 1992, nine years before being bought by Chevron. And Texaco drilled wells for 18 years as junior partner to the state-owned Petroecuador, which today pumps oil from those fields.
Texaco agreed with Petroecuador to divide the clean-up responsibilities, and from 1995 to 1998, spent $40 million restoring some 163 pollution sites. In 1998, Ecuador’s energy secretary signed a document stating Texaco “totally executed” its part of the agreement and relieving the company from future government claims. Testimony before Ecuador’s legislature verified that the remaining toxic sludge pits were Petroecuador’s responsibility. But those facts failed to prevent deep-pocketed Chevron, California’s largest company, from being dragged into a civil suit by 48 indigenous named plaintiffs acting for the Amazon Defense Coalition of environmental organizations, which would get all the money.
Under Pressure, Ecuadorean Judge Steps Aside in Suit Against Chevron
The judge’s recusal is expected to cause delays in reaching a verdict.
“It’s like the second shoe dropping,” said Ralph G. Steinhardt, a professor of law and international affairs at the George Washington University Law School, who has followed the case, potentially the world’s largest environmental lawsuit, involving as much as $27 billion in damages. “It’s a stunning turn of events that threatens to perpetuate what is already a very, very long proceeding.”
He said the plaintiffs and the defendants deserved fair procedures, “without any appearance of corruption or prejudgment.”
Judge Núñez admits he needs to step aside; Amazon Defense Coalition proven wrong
Ecuadorian Judge Juan Núñez, the judge presiding over the Chevron environmental lawsuit in Lago Agrio, made the decision Friday to recuse himself from the case. Chevron has maintained that no judge who has participated in the type of meetings shown in the video recordings (released earlier in the week) could possibly have rendered a legitimate decision.
Surprisingly, the Amazon Defense Coalition rushed to the defense of the judge, even though video evidence showed he was having inappropriate meetings. Rather than concede that the judges’ conduct is improper, the Amazon Defense Coalition defended Judge Núñez’s conduct, the Ecuadorian judicial process and vehemently attacked Chevron for turning over evidence of judicial misconduct.
The Amazon Defense Coalition’s steadfast support for the judge despite evidence of inappropriate conduct raises important questions about the organization’s tactics and disregard for a fair and impartial hearing of this case.
Judge in Aguinda v. ChevronTexaco Recuses Himself
The Wall Street Journal and the Associated Press report that Judge Juan Núñez, the Ecuadorian judge presiding over the $27 billion tort case brought against Chevron by resident’s of Ecuador’s Amazon Basin, has recused himself from the case.
Ecuador Judge Says Recuses Himself From Lawsuit Vs Chevron
QUITO -(Dow Jones)- The Ecuadorean judge purportedly caught on videotape discussing a multi-billion dollar lawsuit against Chevron Corp. (CVX) has recused himself from the on-going case, Judge Juan Nunez said Friday.
Nunez declined to explain the reason for his recusal. He did say that he had notified both Chevron and the plaintiffs, a group residing in the Amazon region that accuses Chevron of being responsible environmental contamination that took place decades ago, of his recusal.
Ecuadorian Judge’s Story Contradictory
Ecuadorian Judge Juan Nunez, who was recently caught on video confirming that he will rule against Chevron and that the company’s appeals will be denied, has spoken with a number of media outlets since these videos came to light. His responses have evolved significantly. He has contracted himself and his statements continue to be at odds with what is clearly depicted in the videotapes.
Amazon Watch’s Han Shan Spewing Baseless Accusations
Han Shan, campaign coordinator for Amazon Watch, accuses me of being a “sponsored blogger” for Chevron. That’s a lie!
It’s unfortunate that groups like Amazon Watch have been conned into supporting this phony lawsuit against Chevron by a bunch of greedy trial lawyers. Steven Donziger, the law firm of Kohn Swift & Graft, Democrat power lobbyist Ben Barnes, and the Washington, D.C. based PR firm, Hinton Communications, have done a masterful job of spreading the big lie. Unfortunately, the usual crowed of radical environmentalists, Hollywood bleeding-hearts and some clueless media have jumped onboard the bandwagon.
Crooked and corrupt politics
The videotapes obtained by Chevron demonstrate conclusively that the case against the oil company and Texaco, which it acquired in 2000, is stacked against Chevron. In the tapes, the judge in the case secretly states that he will find Chevron guilty in the $27 billion case of alleged pollution in the Amazon and that he will deny all appeals by Chevron and its attorneys, despite the fact that the case is still in progress. See: chevron.com/news/press.
It would be easy to say that Amazon Watch, Amazon Defense Coalition, Steven Donziger, Kohn Swift & Graf, and lobbyist Ben Barnes have egg on their faces. But the reality is starker: they have a six-egg cheesy omelet dripping all over themselves. Covered in the mess is Joe Berlinger, who produced the movie “Crude,” a Stalin-era piece of propaganda for the attorneys and their ‘environmental’ supporters.
Now the plaintiffs’ attorneys and their supporters must stop the propaganda and realize that beyond their wild dreams of reaping a windfall profit based on false charges against Chevron, that they owe the media, the public, and most of all the indigenous population of Ecuador an apology for their continuing campaign of disinformation and propaganda aimed solely at lining their own pockets.
The time is now to turn attention to PetroEcuador and demand that Ecuador clean up its own mess.
Chevron: Tapes Show Bias in Ecuador Case
It’s the kind of blockbuster plot twist normally reserved for the movies. Oil giant Chevron (CVX), enduring a barrage of negative publicity from a $27 billion environmental class-action lawsuit filed in Ecuador, unveiled a series of secretly recorded videos that suggests the judge in the case has already decided to rule against Chevron and is scheming with representatives of the ruling party of Ecuadorean President Rafael Correa to collect a $3 million bribe from a company purportedly angling to win some of the cleanup business.
Examiner Editorial: Video from Chevron reveals corruption in Ecuador lawsuit
The looking-glass maze of Ecuador courtroom battles that since 2003 has involved the $27 billion rain forest pollution lawsuit against Chevron might be blown apart now. San Ramon-based Chevron went public Monday with undercover videos apparently showing the presiding case judge and officials of Ecuador’s ruling party negotiating a $3 million bribe from two supposed businessmen.
The money was to be divided between the judge and Ecuador’s “presidency” in exchange for lucrative cleanup contracts after the judge’s “guaranteed” guilty verdict arrived this autumn. Chevron delivered its video recordings to the Ecuador national prosecutor, calling for disqualification of the judge and annulment of all his prior rulings.
Chevron vs. Ecuador: The Battle Heats Up
Chevron (CVX) dropped a bombshell when it leveled charges of bribery and judicial misconduct in a $27 billion environmental lawsuit in Ecuador. But instead of causing a major political shakeup in Quito, the company now finds itself under attack from officials in the Ecuadoran capital.
The California-based energy giant released videos on Aug. 31 on its Web site that it says show Ecuadoran Judge Juan Nuñez confirming that the company will lose the high-profile case and that any appeal will be a formality. The tapes also show what Chevron claims are representatives of President Rafael Correa’s ruling Alianza PAIS party discussing a $3 million bribe in exchange for remediation work after the verdict. Chevron has asked that the judge step down and his prior rulings be disqualified.
ECUADOR JUDGE MUST WITHDRAW FROM CHEVRON TEXACO LAWSUIT
Now that videotapes have surfaced revealing a bribery plot at the heart of a $27 billion lawsuit filed in Ecuador against Chevron, the judge presiding in the case – and caught on tape himself – must step down.
Judge Juan Nunez should recuse himself from the case not only to preserve the tattered remains of his own reputation but also that of his country which is currently enjoying “Banana Republic” status as a result of these incriminating videotapes.
The Amazon Defense Coalition has full confidence in the Ecuadorian judicial system?
“We have full confidence in the Ecuadorian judicial system, as does Chevron.”
-Karen Hinton, spokesperson for the Amazon Defense Coalition.
Not true. Chevron has consistently asserted that the case has involved improper complicity between the plaintiffs and Ecuador’s executive branch and other legal irregularities. And Chevron has asserted that it cannot get a fair trail.
Ecuador’s Judiciary: The Reality:
Let us take a closer look at the judiciary being defended by the Amazon Defense Coalition. In a 2009 statement, the U.S. State Department, Investment Climate said, “Corruption is a serious problem in Ecuador. The courts are often susceptible to outside pressure and bribes. Neither Congressional oversight nor internal judicial branch mechanisms have shown a consistent capacity to effectively investigate and discipline allegedly corrupt judges.”
Additionally, the 2008 Transparency International Corruption Perceptions Index ranks Ecuador 151st out of the 180 countries surveyed for the Corruption Perceptions Index, with a score of 2.0. This score is on par with the Republic of Congo (1.9, 158/180), and worse than Cuba (4.3, 65/180) and Iran (2.3, 141/180).
Ecuador vs. Chevron Lawsuit: Does Video Implicate Judge?
The lawsuit, the largest of its kind, has lasted 16 years, pitting U.S. oil giant Chevron against residents in the Amazon jungle of Ecuador. They accuse the company of massive petro-contamination of their communities in the late 20th century and seek $27 billion in damages, an amount that has turned nervous corporate heads worldwide.
But now, three months before a verdict is expected to be handed down, Chevron is doing the accusing, filing its own action with Ecuador’s prosecutor general. It charges that the Ecuadorian judge in the case should be removed because, it claims, secretly recorded videos captured him admitting that he has already decided that Chevron is guilty – and they allegedly implicate him in a scheme to snag $3 million in bribes from firms hoping to win oil-cleanup contracts after his ruling. Also implicated are high-ranking officials in the government of leftist Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa, an outspoken critic of the U.S. (See pictures of the Amazon contamination that’s at the center of the Chevron-Ecuador lawsuit.)
Chevron: No payment for enviro damages in Ecuador
NEW YORK — Chevron said Tuesday that it would not pay damages, as much as $27 billion, if it loses an environmental lawsuit now before a judge in Ecuador.
The company spoke about the case a day after releasing video that it said proves that the judge in the case is corrupt.
“It is a judicial farce,” Charles James, Chevron’s executive vice president, told The Associated Press. “When you have government complicity with the plaintiffs, a weak legal system and a rush to judgment against you, the only thing you do in these circumstances is fight the enforcement.”
Chevron posts videos of purported corruption in Ecuador
Chevron said the videos “reveal a three-million-dollar bribery scheme implicating the judge presiding over the environmental lawsuit” against it, in a statement.
In a statement, Chevron said it “has consistently asserted that the case has involved improper complicity between the plaintiffs and Ecuador’s executive branch and other legal irregularities.”
Former Chevron GC Speaks Out On Ecuadorian Recordings
The Am Law Daily caught up with James to talk about the case, the videotapes, and where he sees Chevron’s decade-long legal battle going next.
When did you become aware of these recordings?
The recordings came to the attention of one of our company representatives in Ecuador in early June. I received a call from Edward Scott, the vice president and general counsel of our upstream business unit, shortly thereafter.
Was there due diligence done on the tapes?
We wanted to handle this as responsibly as we could and not have a hysterical reaction. So first we went about getting interviews with [the two individuals who did the reporting] and making sure we had good transcriptions of the recordings. We also did some forensic analysis. We’re an energy company, not an investigator, so we had to do some due diligence before we turned this over to the appropriate authorities.
Undercover Video Reveals $3 Million Bribe Scheme in $27-Billion Suit Against Chevron
Lawsuit that inspired ‘60 Minutes’ report and NYTimes story has corruption angle not revealed in outlets’ reporting.
Imagine being sued in a third-world country with a leftist government and you’re a major international corporation with deep pockets. Sounds like you might have a deck stacked against you, right?
Back in May, CBS’s “60 Minutes” aired a one-sided segment that could be viewed as nothing short of serving as an accomplice in $27-billion extortion effort by a leftist Latin American government against Chevron (NYSE:CVX). The segment was about a lawsuit filed by the Amazon Defense Coalition (ADC), a group described as “eco-radicals,” who are trying to squeeze $27 billion from Chevron for environmental cleanup that Ecuador’s government signed off on more than a decade ago.
EDITORIAL: Chevron’s message to Garcia
Back in May, Ecuadorean Attorney General Diego Garcia Carrion was not happy with The Washington Times editorial board. We had written that a $27 billion environmental lawsuit in Ecuador against Texaco/Chevron was no more than a rigged “shakedown of millions of American small investors who have a stake” in the oil company. Mr. Garcia’s letter in response claimed that “the government of Ecuador is not a party” to the litigation and that observers could expect “a just and reasoned decision in the case.”
On both counts, here’s the message to Garcia: Think again.
Ecuador’s court system has been denounced as unreliable or corrupt by the United Nations, the International Bar Association and the U.S. State Department. If this new evidence of corruption is allowed to go unpunished, the United States ought to withdraw special trade status enjoyed by Ecuador.
Chevron Alleges Bribery in Ecuador Suit
Charles James, executive vice president of Chevron, said the two were looking for water treatment contracts, but that the ruling party official had steered them toward environmental remediation contracts he said would result from Chevron losing its legal battle. Chevron said Borja and Hansen met with the judge twice, once in his chambers and once in a Quito Holiday Inn. The pair also met with the party official, Garcia, at the party’s headquarters.
“The evidentiary phase of the case is still open,” James said. “Yet the judge says the appeal is a formality.” He added that “there’s no way an impartial jurist could have participated in these meetings and retained any impartiality.”
Chevron Offers Evidence of Bribery in Ecuador Lawsuit
CARACAS, Venezuela — The oil giant Chevron said Monday that it had obtained video recordings of meetings in Ecuador this year that appear to reveal a bribery scheme connected to a $27 billion lawsuit the company faces over environmental damage at oil fields it operated in remote areas of the Amazon forest in Ecuador.
The videos, together with audio recordings obtained by businessmen using watches and pens implanted with bugging devices, appear to implicate Ecuadoran officials and political operatives, including possibly Juan Núñez, the judge overseeing the lawsuit, and Pierina Correa, the sister of Ecuador’s president, Rafael Correa.
The recordings indicate that an Ecuadoran political operative was working to obtain $3 million in bribes related to environmental cleanup contracts to be awarded in the event of a ruling against Chevron.
Chevron accuses judge in Ecuador case of misconduct
SAN FRANCISCO, Aug 31 (Reuters) – Chevron Corp (CVX.N) has accused the judge in a $27 billion environmental damage case in Ecuador of misconduct and being involved in a bribery scheme that Chevron said appears to involve Ecuador’s government.
The U.S. oil company said in a statement on Monday that it would seek disqualification of Judge Juan Nunez after providing Ecuadorean and U.S. authorities with secretly recorded video of Nunez talking of ruling against Chevron later this year.
A Revealing Response from an Anti-Chevron Flack
A litigant sincerely interested in justice would not be immediately slurring a party for bringing this information to light. But Hinton et al. have always been interested first in attacking Chevron’s reputation as part of a PR strategy designed to produce an out-of-court settlement. That’s why they try to turn the annual stockholders’ meeting into a PR circus — negative publicity. The more damage the trial lawyer/activist alliance can inflict on Chevron’s reputation (and stock), the greater the possibility of a settlement — or so they believe.
Videotape Evidence of Corruption in Chevron Ecuador Case Illustrates Erosion of Rule of Law
Latest evidence underscores a fair trial in Ecuador is not possible
WASHINGTON, Aug. 31 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — The following is a statement by Lisa A. Rickard, president of the U.S. Chamber Institute for Legal Reform, on the release of videos implicating the Ecuadorian judge presiding over the environmental lawsuit against Chevron:
“The video evidence released today in the Chevron case in Ecuador showing what appears to be gross judicial misconduct, direct interference by the Ecuadorian government, and multi-million dollar bribery is extremely troubling, and calls into serious question the ability for U.S. companies to continue doing business in countries like Ecuador where the rule of law has been so degraded.
“Chevron has alerted authorities both in Ecuador and in the United States, and both governments should investigate this evidence in a serious and expeditious manner.
“Further, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce believes that Congress should consider this matter when it evaluates the status of U.S.-Ecuadorian trade preferences as part of the Andean Trade Preferences Act renewal next January. These trade preferences are a privilege, not a right, and Congress should consider the larger pattern of disregard for the rule of law when it decides whether to extend them to Ecuador yet again.”
Chevron Ecuador Judge Nunez bribery scandal – implications
In a blockbuster development, Ecuador Judge Juan Nunez, the key legal figure in the Chevron Ecuador environmental damage case, is captured in a video shown here explaining that he plans to rule against the oil giant and for an award of $27 billion “more or less”. The judge explains that the verdict will happen and that Chevron will be blocked from filing an appeal of his ruling. In that segment of the video, the Judge explains he’s only there to talk about the verdict, not about “the other stuff” which refers to a $3 million payoff request. Later in the video its implied that Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa will benefit from the bribe amount.
On video today I talked to Chevron Media Relations representative Sean Covey about the video and Chevron’s investigation.
o today I talked to Chevron Media Relations representative Sean Covey about the video and Chevron’s investigation.
Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/abraham/detail?blogid=95&entry_id=46608#ixzz0Pot9qaPg
Chevron’s Shakedown
Chevron, which has been battling the most expensive lawsuit in history from Ecuadorean environmental radicals, released a video Monday showing the “political coordinator” from Ecuador’s ruling party telling a couple of contractors that he’d be glad to get them contracts to remediate rain forest pollution — for a $3 million fee.
The $3 million the “political coordinator” of Ecuador’s ruling party tried to extort would be divided three ways: $1 million for the judge, $1 million for “the presidency” and $1 million for the plaintiffs — a radical group known as the Amazon Defense Coalition.
The merits of Chevron’s case are irrelevant to Ecuador, whose judge is internationally recognized as the arbiter of the case. And the U.S. government’s passivity in this case is foolish. Chevron’s fate should be a lesson: Ecuador’s crooks will shake down American corporations for everything they have — and then some.
Chevron Seeks Ecuador Judge’s Removal, Citing Bribery
Aug. 31 (Bloomberg) — Chevron Corp. says it has videotapes showing that the Ecuadorean government and a provincial judge overseeing a $27 billion environmental lawsuit may have sought $3 million in bribes from businessmen seeking to gain contracts to clean up chemical waste in the Amazon basin.
Chevron, the second-largest U.S. oil company, said it sent the recordings to Ecuador’s top prosecutor and the U.S. Justice Department and will seek to disqualify Judge Juan Nunez, president of the Nueva Loja Superior Court, who was expected to rule in the next few months whether Chevron should pay damages.
Chevron Accuses Ecuadorian Judge of Taking Bribes in Mammoth Tort Case
The decades-long legal battle between Chevron and Ecuador took yet another dramatic turn on Monday when the company announced that it has video tapes revealing a $3 million bribery scheme implicating the judge overseeing a multibillion-dollar civil suit filed against the company by indigenous residents of the country’s Amazon Basin.
The latest turn has Chevron and its lawyers from Jones Day firing back against the 30,000 plaintiffs and their lawyers, as well as the Ecuadorian legal system. The case stems from environmental contamination allegedly caused by years of oil drilling in the region conducted by Texaco, which Chevron bought for nearly $35 billion in 2000. (Click here for a feature story on the case in The American Lawyer’s Fall 2006 Litigation Supplement.)
Hollywood Leftists Serve As Willing Useful Idiots for A Tyrant
We all know Darryl Hannah is a pretty vapid idiot. And we know Trudie Styler, Sting’s wife, likes to channel her new-agey self into feeling good as she jets around on private jets telling you to lower your carbon footprint.
What we’re learning now is that both, along with a number of other eco-activist Hollywood trendsetters is that they are willfully, actively serving as willful idiots for Ecuadorian tyrant Rafeal Correa.
ECUADOR SCANDAL: Judge, Rafael Correa Operatives Caught in Videotaped Bribery Recordings Against Chevron
SAN RAMON, Calif. — Chevron Corporation today provided authorities in Ecuador and the U.S. with video recordings that reveal a $3 million bribery scheme implicating the judge presiding over the environmental lawsuit currently pending against the company and individuals who identify themselves as representatives of the Ecuadorian government and its ruling party.
In the videos, the judge confirms that he will rule against Chevron and that appeals by the energy company will be denied – even though the trial is ongoing and evidence is still being received. A purported party official also states that lawyers from the executive branch have been sent to assist the judge in writing the decision.
The Amazon Post
- Petroecuador Responsible for Oil Field InfrastructureThe U.S. trial lawyers behind the environmental lawsuit in Ecuador consistently assert that Chevron, a company that has never operated in Ecuador, is somehow responsible for the current state of Petroecuador’s environmental mismanagement. Moreover, when confronted with the reality of Petroecuador’s reckless performance over the last two decades, the lawyers […]
- Web of Influence Shows Financial, Political Ties of the Government of Ecuador, U.S. Attorneys and Their Efforts to Sway Justice in the Case Against Chevron in EcuadorAn elaborate series of relationships between the Ecuadorian government, U.S. trial lawyers and activist groups show that strong economic and political ties exist in their efforts to put pressure on a small rural courtroom in Lago Agrio, Ecuador, to find Chevron guilty in an environmental lawsuit. This interactive diagram highlights these relationships and pr […]
- Myth 5: Texaco Petroleum is solely responsible for the problems in Ecuador’s Oriente regionChevron is being blamed for a situation that is the sole responsibility of the Ecuadorian government and Petroecuador. Petroecuador, Ecuador’s state-owned oil company, was the majority partner in the consortium with Texaco Petroleum. Today, Petroecuador still owns and operates the oilfields in the former Concession area as well as other fields in the Amazon. […]
- Myth 4: Oil contamination in water is the biggest health threat facing the OrienteThere is no question that the people of the Oriente region of Ecuador face a series of challenges regarding health in their communities. However, they are being deceived by the trial lawyers and activists who have brought this lawsuit. The major health concerns in the Oriente region are not the result of oil operations, but are [...]
- Myth 3: The judicial system in Ecuador is fair and independentThe judicial system in Ecuador is not fair and is far from independent. Since assuming office in January 2007, President Correa has consolidated his power over all of Ecuador, including its political, financial, and media institutions: Correa consolidated political power when the Constituent Assembly, which is dominated by his political party, Alianza PAIS, […]
- Myth 2: There have been over 1,400 cancer deaths as a result of oil pollutionThe cancer claims made by Richard Cabrera is one of the most shocking examples of the absurdity of his work. Cabrera, a mining engineer with no experience or training in oilfield remediation work, was appointed by the court to assess possible environmental damage. This is an environmental remediation case, and none of the 48 named plaintiffs [...]
- Trial lawyers seeking a major payday don’t often want the facts to get in the way of a good storyAnd they’ll keep telling their story over and over again with more and more embellishment until someone either confronts them with the truth or pays them to stop. Here is one of the major myths the US-based trial lawyers and environmental activist groups have spun in a naked attempted to tarnish Chevron’s reputation in the U.S. [...]
- Claims of Indigenous Extinction in Amazon Region Proven FalseIn yet another fabrication put forth to mislead the public, the American trial lawyers behind the Chevron case in Ecuador and their activist NGO partners continue to claim that the indigenous tribes in the former consortium region are “near extinct.” However, this claim could not be any further from the truth. Dr. Robert Wasserstrom, a former [...]
- Plaintiffs’ Lawyers’ Statements on Groundwater Contamination Misleading and IncorrectIn virtually every public statement and news release, the plaintiffs’ lawyers and their activist NGO partners claim that the remediated sites that Texaco was responsible for under the 1998 Remediation Action Plan (RAP) “contain cancer-causing toxins at levels hundreds of times higher than U.S. and Ecuadorian law allows.” Not surprisingly, the plaintiffs’ law […]
- Hidden Deal in Ecuador Case: Lawyers suing Chevron Strike Agreement That Spares Petroecuador From Litigation and Ensures Government Support“Since Texaco left, Petro[Ecuador] has produced even more damage and many more disasters than Texaco.” – Pablo Fajardo, member of plaintiffs legal team Ever wonder why the U.S. trial lawyers in the Ecuadorian Amazon litigation case against Chevron choose to sue Texaco, the minority partner in the consortium that launched the country’s energy indu […]
