Chevron Prevails In Suit Marred By Sex, Blackmail

Ecuadorean plaintiffs cannot collect a $9 billion judgment against Chevron just because they claim not to know the lawyers representing them were engaging in bribery, coercion, and fraud. “There is no authority suggesting that a party ignorant of its attorney’s fraudulent actions may enforce a fraudulently procured judgment,” Second Circuit Court of Appeals judge Amalya Kearse wrote for the three-judge panel that heard the case. “Even innocent clients may not benefit from the fraud of their attorney.” Ecuador sued Chevron over rainforest damage, but lead attorney in the case, Steven Dozinger, engaged in illegal behavior. That wipes out the billions in damages awarded by a judge in Ecuador in 2011 and upheld by the nation’s highest court in 2014.