Posted on 08/08/2007 11:27:51 AM PDT by SmithL
A judge dismissed three Ecuadorians from a lawsuit against San Ramon-based Chevron Corp., saying attorneys "manufactured" their claims that the company's chemical dumping in their country caused cancer.
U.S. District Judge William Alsup in San Francisco threw out the claims against Chevron, the second-biggest U.S. oil company, Aug. 3. He blamed lawyers representing the Ecuadorians for fabricating their illnesses.
Seven residents of Ecuador's Oriente region sued, claiming they contracted cancer due to Texaco Inc. and Texaco Petroleum Co.'s, now part of Chevron, contamination of rain forests.
The case relies in part on Gloria Chamba, who in the complaint claimed her son contracted leukemia from the chemical dumping.
Interviews revealed that Chamba's son and Gonzales had never been diagnosed with cancer, according to Alsup's ruling.
Chevron spokesman Don Campbell said the false claim identified by Alsup "is a strong reflection" of the accusations the company faced.
(Excerpt) Read more at contracostatimes.com ...
Two things are sure to happen in Richmond every time the refinery has a leak:
Dozens of people will report to the local ER's with 'symptoms' and ambulance chasing lawyers will be there to sign them up.
Classify this under the heading of Blind squirrel finds acorn.
Will the judge take the next logical step and punish the lawyers for their attempt to deceive the court?
I’d love to see that!
Just suing the companies Americans won’t sue?.........
My memory is that Texaco ceded its oil concessions to the national oil company with the agreement that the national oil company would assume any and all liability. They also agreed to pay a fairly large amount toward clean-up of those oil-fields, which they did.
The lawyers have been trying to get around that ever since. Its gone back and forth between Ecuadorian and US courts for years.
Grabbing my chest hollering “I’m having the big one!” A judge in Kalifornia, a Clinton appointee, no less, made this ruling!
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