New York — Now entering its 24th year, an international legal war seeking to hold Chevron liable for oil pollution in the Amazon has featured battles in courtrooms from Ecuador to Canada. In a blow to Ecuadorian villagers who contend the company polluted their lands, an Ontario judge last week protected Chevron’s Canadian assets from being seized as part of the fight. That is a big victory for the second-largest US fossil fuel company, because in 2011, Chevron lost a court case in Ecuador over the question of liability. As far as the Ecuadorian judiciary is concerned, Chevron owes about $9.5bn, plus interest, to the villagers. But the energy giant, contending that the Ecuadorian judgment was obtained by fraud, has refused to pay. Chevron has no assets in Ecuador, so there is nothing there for plaintiffs to seize. That is why the case migrated north to Canada, where a subsidiary has operations the villagers would like to liquidate to cover their verdict. But in a highly technical 35-...
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