ABUJA, June 23 (Reuters) - Britain's supreme court will on
Tuesday hear Nigerian farmers and fishermen appeal to pursue
claims against oil major Shell over spills in the Niger
Delta.
The appeal re-opens the possibility for British
multinationals to be held liable at home for their subsidiaries'
actions abroad. It comes after a setback in 2018 when a London
court ruled that the claim could not be pursued in England.
The Ogale and Bille communities allege that Shell's oil
operations have polluted their land and waters. They are seeking
justice through British courts because cases heard in Nigeria
can take decades to resolve, said Leigh Day, the law firm
representing the farmers and fishermen.
The main question for the courts is whether they have
jurisdiction over claims against Shell's Nigerian subsidiary
Shell Petroleum Development Company, which is jointly operated
with the Nigerian government.
Shell's subsidiary has said "claims by Nigerian communities
against a Nigerian company about events in Nigeria should be
heard in Nigeria and not the UK".
The Nigerian unit says the spills are chiefly due to oil
theft, sabotage and illegal refining. The communities maintain
they cannot seek redress locally.
(Reporting by Paul Carsten in Abuja, editing by Ed Osmond)
