federal appeals court has ruled against two chemical companies

[Guest guest]

K

Fri, 26 Aug 2005 20:05:22 -0400

federal appeals court has ruled against two chemical companies

 

 

 

LOS ANGELES A federal appeals court has ruled against two chemical

companies that sought to avoid a half (B) billion-dollar judgment over

the use of a toxic pesticide in Nicaragua in the 1970s.

The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled today in a case involving Dow

Chemical Company and the oil and gas division of Shell Oil.

 

The companies had asked the court to declare they are not liable for

injuries to Nicaraguans caused by the use of di-bromo-chloro-propane,

a pesticide linked to increased risks of cancer and sterility.

 

Three years ago, a Nicaraguan judge ordered the firms and Standard

Fruit Company to pay 490 (M) million dollars to 583 banana workers.

 

Last year, Dow and two subsidiaries of Shell asked a federal judge to

rule against more than a thousand Nicaraguans involved in various

lawsuits and to find that Nicaraguan court rulings couldn't be

enforced in the U-S.

 

The lower court refused and the appeals court upheld that decision today.

 

Copyright 2005 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material

may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

[Guest guest]

So, does this mean that despite Bush, NAFTA, CAFTA, etc, these

irresponsible and greedy international corporations do in fact have some

limits as to how much harm they can inflict in the name of dollars?

Put another simpler way: you mean that the law applies to them too?

Michael

 

 

(Moderator note: I doubt it. This case probably will be in the courts for many

years. My guess for a likely outcome is that the chemical companies will wind up

paying nothing or almost nothing. It makes for good propaganda though to blame

the " greedy victums " and splash the huge amount around in the media. I once

followed a case from Guatamala that had been drug out for over 20 years in one

court or another. The multinational eventually got everything overturned and

payed zero. It included political pressure, bribes, etc. The people damaged

wound up with zilch. Multinational justice.)

 

 

 

 

 

On Behalf Of

califpacific

Friday, August 26, 2005 7:35 PM

 

federal appeals court has ruled

against two chemical companies

 

K

Fri, 26 Aug 2005 20:05:22 -0400

federal appeals court has ruled against two chemical companies

 

 

 

LOS ANGELES A federal appeals court has ruled against two chemical

companies that sought to avoid a half (B) billion-dollar judgment over

the use of a toxic pesticide in Nicaragua in the 1970s.

The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled today in a case involving Dow

Chemical Company and the oil and gas division of Shell Oil.

 

The companies had asked the court to declare they are not liable for

injuries to Nicaraguans caused by the use of di-bromo-chloro-propane,

a pesticide linked to increased risks of cancer and sterility.

 

Three years ago, a Nicaraguan judge ordered the firms and Standard

Fruit Company to pay 490 (M) million dollars to 583 banana workers.

 

Last year, Dow and two subsidiaries of Shell asked a federal judge to

rule against more than a thousand Nicaraguans involved in various

lawsuits and to find that Nicaraguan court rulings couldn't be

enforced in the U-S.

 

The lower court refused and the appeals court upheld that decision today.

 

Copyright 2005 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material

may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.