Villagers cannot sue Shell in UK for Nigerian oil spill
January 26, 2017
Britain’s high court ruled on Thursday that two groups of Nigerian villagers cannot pursue a case against Royal Dutch Shell in UK courts over oil spill allegations in Nigeria.
Had the High Court ruled in favour of the two groups, other claimants against British-based multinationals could have been emboldened to pursue legal action through the British courts, some legal experts had said.
The communities say Nigerian courts are unfit to hear the case against Shell subsidiary Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria (SPDC). Shell says the case should be heard in Nigeria because the matter is “uniquely a Nigerian problem”.
