Lago Agrio: Dutch Appeals Court Affirms Denial of Annulment

The Court of Appeals of the Hague has affirmed a lower court decision decision refusing to set aside the interim awards Chevron had won against Ecuador in the investment treaty arbitration. The main questions before the lower court were, first, whether Chevron or Texaco had an “investment” in Ecuador for purposes of the BIT, and, second, whether the awards were against public policy to the extent they sought to force Ecuador to suspend the operation of the Lago Agrio judgment, contrary (Ecuador said) to Ecuadoran law.

I had hoped to have a translation of the new Dutch decision by now, so that I could give you some commentary on it, but the translation has not yet materialized, so for now, I am just noting the outcome of the case. I believe but am not certain that a last appeal will lie to the Dutch Supreme Court, and this being the Lago Agrio case, no doubt Ecuador will take that appeal.