Pablo Fajardo

Pablo Fajardo Mendoza (or Pablo Fajardo) is an Ecuadorian native of Cofán descent, who was raised in extreme poverty. With the help of the Roman Catholic Church,[1] he put himself through law school in the Universidad Técnica Particular de Loja. He was the lead lawyer against Chevron Corporation, representing thousands of natives in the Lago Agrio oil field, formerly developed by Texaco.

He won a CNN "Hero's award" in 2007,[2] and along with associate Luis Yanza, a Goldman Environmental Prize in 2008[3] In the wake of the latter prize Chevron launched an international publicity campaign accusing Fajardo of dishonesty and greed.[4]

He is featured in the 2009 documentary film Crude.

On February 14, 2011, a local court in Ecuador ordered Chevron Corporation to pay $18.1 billion[5] but was later reduced to $9.5 billion by the Ecuador Supreme Court.[6]

Following the judgment, Chevron claimed that it had been procured by fraud and brought a RICO claim against lead American counsel Steven R. Donziger in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York (S.D.N.Y.). Judge Lewis Kaplan issued an opinion on 4 March 2014, accepting Chevron's allegations. The court found that lead Donziger corrupted the Ecuadorian case by submitting fraudulent evidence, coercing the judge, paying off a supposedly impartial expert, paying a Colorado consulting firm to write the expert's report, falsely presenting the report as the expert's own work, bribing the judge to give a ruling against Chevron and then trying to mislead the US courts. Judge Kaplan's ruling, which is based on the federal Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act was affirmed by the Second Circuit on August 8, 2016.[7]

The Amazon Defense Fund (ADF), which backed the original lawsuit responsible for Fajardo's recognition, suspended its relationship with Fajardo, complaining that he was complicit in the Ecuadorian government's decision to pay $112 million to Chevron and not ADF. The payment to Chevron came as a result of an arbitration ordered by an international court.[8]

References

  1. ↑ "Crude", film, 2007
  2. ↑ "CNN Heroes – CNN's Global Search for Everyday People Changing the World". CNN. 2007.
  3. ↑ Chris Kraul (April 13, 2008). "Amazon Activists win Goldman Environmental Prize". Los Angeles Times.
  4. ↑ Phillip Matier and Andrew Ross (April 13, 2008). "Prize Fight". San Francisco Chronicle.
  5. ↑ http://www.lefigaro.fr/international/2012/01/04/01003-20120104ARTFIG00565-equateur-chevron-condamne-a-verser-18-mds-de-dollars.php
  6. ↑ "Amazon Crusader. Chevron Pest. Fraud?". Business Week. March 9, 2011. Retrieved July 22, 2011.
  7. ↑ "Ruling Blocks $8.6 Billion Order in Ecuador Fight".
  8. ↑ http://fortune.com/2016/07/31/adf-suspends-pablo-fajardo-attorney-who-took-chevron-to-court-for-18-billion/


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