H5 Settles With Chevron Over Ecuadorian Lawsuit
September 03 2015 - 8:00AM
Business Wire
Chevron Corporation (NYSE:CVX) has reached a settlement
agreement with H5, a California-based e-discovery and litigation
services firm. In the settlement, H5 has withdrawn its support from
the litigation against Chevron in Ecuador and has assigned its 1.25
percent interest in the $9.5 billion Ecuadorian judgment to
Chevron. In 2014, Chevron obtained court-ordered discovery from H5
for the company’s role in supporting and advancing the lawsuit led
by Steven Donziger, which a federal judge found to be tainted by
fraud.
“Chevron is pleased that H5 has ended its association with this
scheme,” said R. Hewitt Pate, Chevron’s vice president and general
counsel. “Chevron is also pleased that H5 has taken the further
action of disclaiming any interest in the Ecuadorian judgment and
relinquishing its interest to Chevron. It remains Chevron’s intent
to hold accountable those responsible for what a federal judge
found to be a fraud.”
H5 became involved in the case in 2009, supporting a variety of
activities. It helped enlist funding from Burford Capital Limited,
a U.K.-based litigation funder, and James Russell DeLeon, a
Gibraltar-based businessman. It also played an integral role in
bringing the Patton Boggs law firm into the case to provide legal
support. Burford, DeLeon and Patton Boggs have all since withdrawn
their support from the fraudulent lawsuit and settled with Chevron.
H5 also assisted Donziger’s team in responding to Chevron’s
discovery related to the Cabrera Report, an Ecuadorian
court-ordered damages report that a U.S. federal court later found
was secretly authored by Donziger and Stratus Consulting, a
Colorado-based environmental consulting firm. Stratus has also
subsequently settled with Chevron.
On March 4, 2014, Judge Lewis Kaplan of the U.S. District Court
for the Southern District of New York ruled that the $9.5 billion
judgment against Chevron in Ecuador was the product of fraud and
racketeering activity, finding it unenforceable in the United
States and holding Steven Donziger liable for RICO violations.
In a public statement released today H5 stated:
“Today’s agreement with Chevron
resolves all outstanding issues relating to H5 in the Lago Agrio
matter. Beginning in 2009, H5 proceeded in good faith to provide a
variety of electronic discovery and advisory services in relation
to the Lago Agrio case in Ecuador. In this as in other matters, H5
was called on because of our expertise in complex litigation and
investigations globally. Last year, Chevron obtained a ruling in
its favor from U.S. District Judge Lewis A. Kaplan in New York.
Although H5 was not a party to that lawsuit, H5 has reviewed Judge
Kaplan’s extensive findings. In view of those findings, among other
reasons, H5 has decided it does not want to profit from the
Ecuadorian Judgment and is therefore relinquishing any interest in
the judgment.”
In settling this matter, H5 is the latest party to disassociate
from Donziger and the Lago Agrio Plaintiffs. In addition to the
withdrawal of Woodsford, Burford and DeLeon, who all repudiated the
unethical tactics of Donziger and abandoned their financial
interest in the fraudulent lawsuit, more than a dozen former
insiders and allies testified against Donziger, including his
former co-counsel, environmental consultants, funders, employees
and Ecuadorian collaborators.
Chevron still has claims pending in Gibraltar against Amazonia
Recovery Ltd., a Gibraltar-based company set up to receive and
distribute funds resulting from the Ecuadorian judgment, and Pablo
Fajardo, Luis Yanza and Ermel Chavez, who are directors of the
company. Chevron has alleged that Amazonia is merely a vehicle to
perpetuate the ongoing fraud.
Chevron Corporation is one of the world’s leading integrated
energy companies. The company is involved in virtually every facet
of the energy industry. Chevron explores for, produces and
transports crude oil and natural gas; refines, markets and
distributes transportation fuels and lubricants; manufactures and
sells petrochemicals and additives; generates power and produces
geothermal energy; and develops and deploys technologies that
enhance business value in every aspect of the company’s operations.
Chevron is based in San Ramon, Calif. More information about
Chevron is available at www.chevron.com.
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version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20150903005503/en/
Chevron CorporationMorgan Crinklaw, +1
925-790-6908mkwz@chevron.com
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