Mandan, North Dakota — A Morton County jury of 9 reached a verdict in Vitality Switch’s meritless lawsuit in opposition to Greenpeace entities within the US (Greenpeace Inc, Greenpeace Fund), and Greenpeace Worldwide, discovering the entities accountable for greater than US$660 million, as we speak. Massive Oil Bullies world wide will proceed to attempt to silence free speech and peaceable protest, however the struggle in opposition to Vitality Switch’s meritless SLAPP lawsuit is just not over.
“We’re witnessing a disastrous return to the reckless behaviour that fuelled the local weather disaster, deepened environmental racism, and put fossil gasoline earnings over public well being and a habitable planet. The earlier Trump administration spent 4 years dismantling protections for clear air, water, and Indigenous sovereignty, and now together with its allies needs to complete the job by silencing protest. We is not going to again down. We is not going to be silenced,” mentioned Mads Christensen, Greenpeace Worldwide Govt Director.
“This case ought to alarm everybody, irrespective of their political inclinations,” mentioned Sushma Raman, Interim Govt Director Greenpeace Inc, Greenpeace Fund. “It’s a part of a renewed push by companies to weaponise our courts to silence dissent. We should always all be involved about the way forward for the First Modification, and lawsuits like this geared toward destroying our rights to peaceable protest and free speech. These rights are crucial for any work towards guaranteeing justice – and that’s why we are going to proceed preventing again collectively, in solidarity. Whereas Massive Oil bullies can attempt to cease a single group, they’ll’t cease a motion.”
Vitality Switch’s lawsuits are clear-cut examples of SLAPPs — lawsuits trying to bury nonprofits and activists in authorized charges, push them in the direction of chapter and in the end silence dissent.[1] Massive Oil firms Shell, Whole, and ENI have additionally filed SLAPPs in opposition to Greenpeace entities lately.[2] A few these instances have been efficiently stopped of their tracks. This consists of Greenpeace France efficiently defeating TotalEnergies’ SLAPP on 28 March 2024, and Greenpeace UK and Greenpeace Worldwide forcing Shell to again down from its SLAPP on 10 December 2024.
“Vitality Switch hasn’t heard the final of us on this struggle. We’re simply getting began with our anti-SLAPP lawsuit in opposition to Vitality Switch’s assaults on free speech and peaceable protest. We’ll see Vitality Switch in court docket this July within the Netherlands. We is not going to again down. We is not going to be silenced,” mentioned Greenpeace Worldwide Normal Counsel Kristin Casper.
In February 2024, GPI initiated the primary take a look at of the European Union’s anti-SLAPP Directive by submitting a lawsuit in Dutch court docket in opposition to ET.[3] GPI seeks to get well all damages and prices it has suffered because of ET’s back-to-back, meritless lawsuits demanding lots of of tens of millions of {dollars} in opposition to GPI and the Greenpeace organisations within the US.
ENDS
Images and Movies may be accessed from the Greenpeace Media Library.
Notes:
- ET’s first lawsuit was filed in federal court docket underneath the RICO Act – the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, a US federal statute designed to prosecute mob exercise. The case was dismissed, with the decide stating the proof fell “far quick” of what was wanted to ascertain a RICO enterprise. The federal court docket didn’t resolve on the state legislation so ET promptly filed a brand new case in a North Dakota state court docket with these and different state legislation claims.
- A report by the Coalition Towards SLAPPs in Europe (CASE) documented 1049 SLAPP fits in Europe within the interval 2010-2023, with 166 lawsuits initiated in 2023.
- Greenpeace Worldwide recordsdata lawsuit in opposition to Vitality Switch in first use of EU anti-SLAPP Directive
Contacts:
Greenpeace Worldwide Press Desk, +31 (0)20 718 2470 (obtainable 24 hours), [email protected]
Mandan, North Dakota — A Morton County jury of 9 reached a verdict in Vitality Switch’s meritless lawsuit in opposition to Greenpeace entities within the US (Greenpeace Inc, Greenpeace Fund), and Greenpeace Worldwide, discovering the entities accountable for greater than US$660 million, as we speak. Massive Oil Bullies world wide will proceed to attempt to silence free speech and peaceable protest, however the struggle in opposition to Vitality Switch’s meritless SLAPP lawsuit is just not over.
“We’re witnessing a disastrous return to the reckless behaviour that fuelled the local weather disaster, deepened environmental racism, and put fossil gasoline earnings over public well being and a habitable planet. The earlier Trump administration spent 4 years dismantling protections for clear air, water, and Indigenous sovereignty, and now together with its allies needs to complete the job by silencing protest. We is not going to again down. We is not going to be silenced,” mentioned Mads Christensen, Greenpeace Worldwide Govt Director.
“This case ought to alarm everybody, irrespective of their political inclinations,” mentioned Sushma Raman, Interim Govt Director Greenpeace Inc, Greenpeace Fund. “It’s a part of a renewed push by companies to weaponise our courts to silence dissent. We should always all be involved about the way forward for the First Modification, and lawsuits like this geared toward destroying our rights to peaceable protest and free speech. These rights are crucial for any work towards guaranteeing justice – and that’s why we are going to proceed preventing again collectively, in solidarity. Whereas Massive Oil bullies can attempt to cease a single group, they’ll’t cease a motion.”
Vitality Switch’s lawsuits are clear-cut examples of SLAPPs — lawsuits trying to bury nonprofits and activists in authorized charges, push them in the direction of chapter and in the end silence dissent.[1] Massive Oil firms Shell, Whole, and ENI have additionally filed SLAPPs in opposition to Greenpeace entities lately.[2] A few these instances have been efficiently stopped of their tracks. This consists of Greenpeace France efficiently defeating TotalEnergies’ SLAPP on 28 March 2024, and Greenpeace UK and Greenpeace Worldwide forcing Shell to again down from its SLAPP on 10 December 2024.
“Vitality Switch hasn’t heard the final of us on this struggle. We’re simply getting began with our anti-SLAPP lawsuit in opposition to Vitality Switch’s assaults on free speech and peaceable protest. We’ll see Vitality Switch in court docket this July within the Netherlands. We is not going to again down. We is not going to be silenced,” mentioned Greenpeace Worldwide Normal Counsel Kristin Casper.
In February 2024, GPI initiated the primary take a look at of the European Union’s anti-SLAPP Directive by submitting a lawsuit in Dutch court docket in opposition to ET.[3] GPI seeks to get well all damages and prices it has suffered because of ET’s back-to-back, meritless lawsuits demanding lots of of tens of millions of {dollars} in opposition to GPI and the Greenpeace organisations within the US.
ENDS
Images and Movies may be accessed from the Greenpeace Media Library.
Notes:
- ET’s first lawsuit was filed in federal court docket underneath the RICO Act – the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, a US federal statute designed to prosecute mob exercise. The case was dismissed, with the decide stating the proof fell “far quick” of what was wanted to ascertain a RICO enterprise. The federal court docket didn’t resolve on the state legislation so ET promptly filed a brand new case in a North Dakota state court docket with these and different state legislation claims.
- A report by the Coalition Towards SLAPPs in Europe (CASE) documented 1049 SLAPP fits in Europe within the interval 2010-2023, with 166 lawsuits initiated in 2023.
- Greenpeace Worldwide recordsdata lawsuit in opposition to Vitality Switch in first use of EU anti-SLAPP Directive
Contacts:
Greenpeace Worldwide Press Desk, +31 (0)20 718 2470 (obtainable 24 hours), [email protected]
