Chevron, Texaco and the Lago Agrio judgment: the RICO ruling and the Donziger cases
- Company or project Chevron: Texaco cleaned up and was released from liability (Chevron's position as recorded in the sources reviewed).
- Researchers Record of the 1995–98 agreement: $40 million was spent; the communities were not party to the agreement and were paid nothing. Oil & Gas Journal
A court in Ecuador gave judgment against Chevron, usually cited as $9.5 billion. A US federal court found in 2014 that the judgment had been obtained by corrupt means, an international arbitration tribunal ruled for Chevron, and the lawyer who won the judgment, Steven Donziger, was disbarred and sentenced for criminal contempt.
As reported by Open Class Actions, 2025–26. The judgment is usually cited as $9.5bn; other figures circulate.
Status As of 2025–26: US courts upheld the RICO ruling and the contempt conviction; none of the Ecuadorian judgment was reported paid; an arbitration ordered Ecuador to pay Chevron more than $224 million.
- Chevron — A federal RICO ruling that the Ecuadorian judgment was obtained by corrupt means, affirmed in August 2016 ABA Journal
- Chevron — No payment of the Ecuadorian judgment reported in 2025–26; an arbitration order for Ecuador to pay Chevron more than $224 million Open Class Actions
- Steven Donziger — Disbarred in August 2020; sentenced to six months for criminal contempt; about 993 days of house arrest and 45 days in prison (another account: more than 800 days of house arrest)
- Affected communities — Were not party to the 1995–98 cleanup agreement and were paid nothing under it Oil & Gas Journal
What happened
Between 1995 and 1998 a cleanup in Ecuador was carried out under an agreement in which $40 million was spent and Texaco was released from further liability. Chevron's position, as recorded in the sources reviewed, is that Texaco cleaned up and was released from liability. The communities were not parties to that agreement and nothing was paid to them under it.
A court in Ecuador (Lago Agrio) later gave judgment against Chevron. The judgment is usually cited as $9.5 billion; figures of $8.6 billion, $9.2 billion and more than $18 billion also circulate and are unverified. The sources reviewed do not give the date of the judgment or the facts on which it was based.
On 4 March 2014 Judge Lewis Kaplan of the US District Court for the Southern District of New York issued a 485-page civil racketeering (RICO) ruling for Chevron against the lawyer Steven Donziger. He found that the Ecuadorian judgment had been obtained "by corrupt means", including ghostwriting and a promise of $500,000 to the judge. The Second Circuit affirmed the ruling in August 2016. The ABA Journal reported that the lawyer who won the judgment could not collect it.
In 2018 an arbitration tribunal at the Permanent Court of Arbitration ruled for Chevron against Ecuador; the $9.5 billion judgment is described as found to rest on fraud and bribery. An application to set the decision aside was rejected at The Hague in September 2020, and a compensation stage was noted as still open. Open Class Actions reported in 2025–26 that none of the Ecuadorian judgment had been paid and that an arbitration ordered Ecuador to pay Chevron more than $224 million.
Donziger was suspended from practice in New York in 2018 and disbarred by the New York Appellate Division in August 2020. He was charged with criminal contempt for refusing to hand over his devices, in a prosecution brought by a private law firm after the US prosecutor's office declined to bring it. He was held under pretrial house arrest from August 2019. On 1 October 2021 Judge Loretta Preska sentenced him to six months, the maximum.
He was released on 25 April 2022 after about 993 days of house arrest and 45 days in prison, according to one account; another gives more than 800 days of house arrest. The conviction was affirmed in June 2022 and the US Supreme Court declined review in March 2023. The UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (Opinion 24/2021) found that his deprivation of liberty was arbitrary.
- 19951995–98: $40 million spent on Texaco cleanup; Chevron’s position is that Texaco cleaned up and was released; communities not party to the agreement and paid nothing
- 20144 March: Judge Kaplan’s 485-page RICO ruling for Chevron finds the Ecuadorian judgment was obtained by corrupt means
- 2016August: Second Circuit affirms the RICO ruling
- 2018Donziger suspended from practice in New York; Permanent Court of Arbitration rules for Chevron
- 2019August: pretrial house arrest begins
- 2020August: disbarred by the New York Appellate Division; September: application to set aside the arbitration decision rejected at The Hague
- 20211 October: sentenced to six months for criminal contempt by Judge Preska; UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention issues Opinion 24/2021
- 202225 April: released after about 993 days of house arrest and 45 days in prison; June: conviction affirmed
- 2023March: US Supreme Court declines review of the conviction
- 20262025–26: none of the Ecuadorian judgment reported paid; arbitration orders Ecuador to pay Chevron more than $224 million
What was said
“by corrupt means”
“arbitrary”
Where accounts differ
Each party's account, side by side, with its source. The record does not settle these points; it shows them.
Found in a 485-page RICO ruling that the judgment was obtained “by corrupt means”, including ghostwriting and a promise of $500,000 to the judge. Affirmed by the Second Circuit in August 2016.
ABA JournalRuled for Chevron in 2018; the $9.5 billion judgment is described as found to rest on fraud and bribery. A set-aside application was rejected at The Hague in September 2020.
Oil & Gas JournalSentenced him on 1 October 2021 to six months for criminal contempt, the maximum; the conviction was affirmed in June 2022 and the US Supreme Court declined review in March 2023.
Found in Opinion 24/2021 that his deprivation of liberty was arbitrary.
UN Working Group on Arbitrary DetentionTexaco cleaned up and was released from liability (Chevron's position as recorded in the sources reviewed).
$40 million was spent; the communities were not party to the agreement and were paid nothing.
Oil & Gas JournalHow it looked
Shown
- Texaco cleaned up and was released from liability.Chevron's position as recorded in the sources reviewed (Chevron's own wording is not reproduced)
Recorded
- $40 million was spent on cleanup in 1995–98 and a release was given; the communities were not party to the agreement and were paid nothing.
- A US federal court found the Ecuadorian judgment was obtained by corrupt means, including ghostwriting and a promise of $500,000 to the judge; the Second Circuit affirmed in August 2016.
- The ABA Journal reported that the lawyer who won the Ecuadorian judgment could not collect it.
- A Permanent Court of Arbitration tribunal ruled for Chevron in 2018; a set-aside application was rejected at The Hague in September 2020.
- None of the Ecuadorian judgment was reported paid in 2025–26; an arbitration ordered Ecuador to pay Chevron more than $224 million.
- Donziger was suspended in 2018 and disbarred in August 2020, and was sentenced on 1 October 2021 to six months for criminal contempt; the contempt case was prosecuted by a private law firm after the US prosecutor's office declined to bring it.
- The UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention found Donziger's deprivation of liberty arbitrary (Opinion 24/2021).
Who gained
Reached nature or the ground
Gained elsewhere
Responses on record
- chevron (1995–98 arrangement): Texaco cleaned up and was released from liability (Chevron's position as recorded in the sources reviewed; its own wording is not reproduced).
- chevron (4 March 2014): Won the civil RICO case against Steven Donziger in the Southern District of New York; the ruling found the Ecuadorian judgment was obtained by corrupt means. · ABA Journal
In court and with insurers
Lawsuits and rulings
- Claimant won$9500000bn Usually cited; other figures circulateLago Agrio judgment against ChevronCourt in Ecuador (Lago Agrio) · Civil · Plaintiffs represented by Steven Donziger (not otherwise named) → Chevron
Judgment in Ecuador against Chevron, usually cited as $9.5 billion. It was found by a US federal court to have been obtained by corrupt means. As of 2025–26 none of it was reported paid. Open Class Actions
- 2014-03-04Claimant wonChevron v. Donziger (civil RICO)US District Court, Southern District of New York (Judge Lewis Kaplan); Second Circuit on appeal · Civil · Chevron → Steven Donziger
485-page ruling for Chevron finding the Ecuadorian judgment was obtained by corrupt means, including ghostwriting and a promise of $500,000 to the judge. Affirmed by the Second Circuit in August 2016. ABA Journal
- 2021-10-01Claimant wonCriminal contempt prosecution of Steven DonzigerUS District Court, Southern District of New York (Judge Loretta Preska) · Criminal · United States (prosecution brought by a private law firm after the US prosecutor's office declined to bring it) → Steven Donziger
Convicted of criminal contempt for refusing to hand over his devices. Pretrial house arrest from August 2019. Sentenced on 1 October 2021 to six months, the maximum. Released on 25 April 2022 after about 993 days of house arrest and 45 days in prison (another account gives more than 800 days of house arrest). Conviction affirmed in June 2022; the US Supreme Court declined review in March 2023.
- 2020-08Claimant wonDisbarment of Steven DonzigerNew York Appellate Division · Administrative · Attorney disciplinary authority → Steven Donziger
Suspended in 2018 and disbarred in August 2020.
- 2018Claimant won$224000bn More than; Ecuador ordered to pay Chevron (2025–26 report)Chevron v. Ecuador (investment arbitration)Permanent Court of Arbitration; set-aside application at The Hague · Arbitration · Chevron → Government of Ecuador
Tribunal ruled for Chevron in 2018, in a decision that referred to fraud and bribery in connection with the $9.5 billion judgment; a set-aside application was rejected in September 2020 and a compensation stage was noted as open. Open Class Actions reported in 2025–26 that Ecuador was ordered to pay Chevron more than $224 million. Whether the amount was paid is not stated. Oil & Gas Journal
Insurers
What nature saw
Nature's report opens this page. Below: further outcomes measured on the ground.
What we don't know
Nature
- Not measured Harm to nature: The record holds no measurement of harm to nature.
- Disputed Did the 1995–98 cleanup settle the damage?
Accounts
Record
- Disputed The amount of the Ecuadorian judgment is reported differently: it is usually cited as $9.5 billion, while $8.6 billion, $9.2 billion and more than $18 billion also circulate and are unverified.
- Disputed Accounts differ on the length of Donziger's house arrest: about 993 days (with 45 days in prison) in one account, more than 800 days in another.
- None on record The date and court of the original Lago Agrio judgment and the facts on which it was based are not given in the sources reviewed.
- None on record The 2018 arbitration decision is described as finding that the Lago Agrio judgment rested on fraud and bribery; no source reviewed quotes the finding. The compensation stage of that arbitration is noted as open and its outcome was not found.
- Unclear An Open Class Actions item dated 2025–26 is read as reporting an order for Ecuador to pay Chevron more than $224 million; the tribunal, the date of the order and whether it was paid are not stated, and one account treats the item's meaning as unclear.
- Unclear Whether any money has been paid to the Ecuadorian plaintiffs or for remediation is not on record; nothing was reported paid from the judgment or to communities under the 1995–98 agreement.
Did the harm stop?
The sources reviewed record no ecological outcome. They record that none of the Ecuadorian judgment was reported paid in 2025–26.
Who paid?
Recorded: $40 million of Texaco cleanup spending in 1995–98 with no payment to communities under that agreement; no payment of the Ecuadorian judgment as of 2025–26; and an arbitration order for Ecuador to pay Chevron more than $224 million.
Sources
Press and investigations
- International tribunal rules for Chevron in ongoing Ecuador caseOil & Gas Journal · undated in sources reviewed
- Chevron Ecuador Amazon $224 million enforcementOpen Class Actions · 2025
International bodies
- Opinion 24/2021 concerning Steven DonzigerUN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention · 2021
Connected cases
- Arbitration tribunal finds UK breached UN sea law over Chagos reserve British Indian Ocean Territory · 2009–2015
- Permanent Court of Arbitration (International organisation) — here: Arbitration tribunal (Permanent Court of Arbitration); there: Tribunal that found the breach
- Chevron owns Richmond's 'local news' site, which carries no leak reporting United States · date not stated
- Chevron (Company) — here: Defendant in the Ecuadorian judgment; plaintiff in the US RICO case; claimant in the arbitration; there: owner of the news site
- Chevron pleads no contest to six counts over 2012 Richmond refinery fire United States · 2012–2013
- Chevron (Company) — here: Defendant in the Ecuadorian judgment; plaintiff in the US RICO case; claimant in the arbitration; there: company that pleaded no contest
- COP28 decision promoted carbon capture and left room for transition fuels United Arab Emirates · 2023
- Chevron (Company) — here: Defendant in the Ecuadorian judgment; plaintiff in the US RICO case; claimant in the arbitration; there: Member of the Global CCS Institute
- EU narrows supply-chain law and delays deforestation rule twice European Union · 2024–2026
- Chevron (Company) — here: Defendant in the Ecuadorian judgment; plaintiff in the US RICO case; claimant in the arbitration; there: Named in leaked documents on the supply-chain law
- Exxon Valdez: the spill, insurance and court cases United States · 1989–2015
- US Supreme Court (Court) — here: Declined review of the contempt conviction (March 2023); there: Cut punitive damages to $507.5m (2008)
- Galápagos debt-for-nature swap Ecuador · 2023–2041
- Government of Ecuador (Government) — here: Respondent in the arbitration; ordered to pay Chevron more than $224 million; there: Borrower
- Galápagos debt-for-nature swap used US$656 million of US political risk insurance Ecuador · 2023
- Government of Ecuador (Government) — here: Respondent in the arbitration; ordered to pay Chevron more than $224 million; there: Debtor; issued the new Galápagos bond
- Gorgon LNG carbon storage fell short; gap closed with credits Australia · 2006
- Chevron (Company) — here: Defendant in the Ecuadorian judgment; plaintiff in the US RICO case; claimant in the arbitration; there: operator of Gorgon LNG
- Hess agreed to buy at least $750m of Guyana forest credits Guyana · 2022–2032
- Chevron (Company) — here: Defendant in the Ecuadorian judgment; plaintiff in the US RICO case; claimant in the arbitration; there: acquired Hess
- Hill & Knowlton and Edelman: PR for fossil fuel clients and climate summits Egypt · 2005–2025
- Chevron (Company) — here: Defendant in the Ecuadorian judgment; plaintiff in the US RICO case; claimant in the arbitration; there: agency client
- Isle de Jean Charles relocation and a $744.6m Chevron coastal-loss verdict United States · 2016–2026
- Chevron (Company) — here: Defendant in the Ecuadorian judgment; plaintiff in the US RICO case; claimant in the arbitration; there: Defendant in the Plaquemines Parish coastal-loss case
- Los Cedros mining permits annulled (Ecuador) Ecuador · 2021
- Government of Ecuador (Government) — here: Respondent in the arbitration; ordered to pay Chevron more than $224 million; there: State authority
- Monsanto/Bayer PCB and Roundup insurance suit v AIG United States · 1967–2026
- US Supreme Court (Court) — here: Declined review of the contempt conviction (March 2023); there: Decided Monsanto v. Durnell, 7–2
- Paraquat litigation (Syngenta/Chevron) and the Paraquat Papers United States · 1958–2026
- Chevron (Company) — here: Defendant in the Ecuadorian judgment; plaintiff in the US RICO case; claimant in the arbitration; there: US distributor of paraquat, 1966 to 1986
- Removal of the Endangered Species Act 'harm' definition United States · 2025–2026
- US Supreme Court (Court) — here: Declined review of the contempt conviction (March 2023); there: Upheld the definition in 1995 (Sweet Home); decided Loper Bright in 2024
- Roundup litigation, settlements and legal shield (Bayer/Monsanto) United States · 2009–2026
- US Supreme Court (Court) — here: Declined review of the contempt conviction (March 2023); there: Decided Monsanto v. Durnell
- US budget law cuts fossil fuel royalties and sets 4 million coal acres for leasing United States · 2025
- Chevron (Company) — here: Defendant in the Ecuadorian judgment; plaintiff in the US RICO case; claimant in the arbitration; there: Named inauguration-fund donor
- US Supreme Court blocks state cancer-warning suits against pesticide makers United States · 2026
- US Supreme Court (Court) — here: Declined review of the contempt conviction (March 2023); there: Ruled on the preemption question
- Yasuní ITT oil wells closure (Ecuador) Ecuador · 2007–2026
- Government of Ecuador (Government) — here: Respondent in the arbitration; ordered to pay Chevron more than $224 million; there: Government; party to the referendum implementation