Perenco case in Democratic Republic of the Congo

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Why was a legal action brought against Perenco?

Sherpa recalls that any person accused or prosecuted by a national or international jurisdiction is presumed innocent until found guilty by a final court decision. In this respect, an appealable decision does not constitute a final decision.

Perenco is a multinational oil company specialized in the operation of end-of-life oil wells. It is the sole oil operator present in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Numerous reports and investigations from the Congolese Senate, local and international civil society organisations (CSOs) denounce serious environmental harms and impacts on the rights of the neighbouring communities.

Sherpa and Friends of the Earth France have been investigating for many years the involvement of the French company Perenco S.A. in oil activities carried out by the group in the DRC. Due to the opacity of the operations and corporate structure of the oil company, they initiated an action using a specific provision (Article 145 of the French Code of Civil Procedure) to collect additional evidence about the links between Perenco S.A. and the companies operating locally in the DRC. In 2019, they obtained an ex parte order authorising them to have evidence seized from the premises of Perenco S.A., but the company refused to execute it by blocking the access of the bailiff to its office. The CSOs then renewed their request and, faced with the refusal of the first judges and then of the Court of appeal, they appealed to the Court of cassation which ruled in their favour in 2022. The Court of cassation judged that the possibility for the CSOs to file the case was to be decided according to French law, and not foreign law as the company had argued.

Following this initial “pre-trial” action Sherpa and Friends of the Earth France, supported by the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA-US), took legal action against the company Perenco S.A before the Paris Court in November 2022. They ask that Perenco S.A. be ordered to remedy the environmental damage caused in the DRC. They also ask the Court to order the company to take measures in order to end environmental harms and prevent any future damages to the environment.

Timeline

Key dates

  • 27 July 2019

    First judicial request

    In order to obtain more information about the links between the French company Perenco S.A. and the companies operating locally in the DRC, Sherpa and Friends of the Earth France filed an ex parte request before the Court of Paris.

  • 2 August 2019

    The Court granted access to internal documents of the company

    The Court of Paris authorized the CSOs to have evidence seized from the premises of Perenco S.A. by a bailiff.

  • 19 September 2019

    Perenco S.A. refused to enforce the Court’s decision

    The company refused to give access to its premises and to hand over the requested documents to the bailiff designated by the Court.

  • 23 September 2019

    New judicial request to obtain evidence

    Due to the company’s refusal to enforce the Court’s decision, Sherpa and Friends of the Earth France renewed their request before the Court.

  • 22 October 2019

    The judicial request is dismissed

    This time, the Paris Court ruled that the CSO’s had no legitimate reason (“motif légitime”) for such a request. The CSO’s claims were dismissed.

  • 17 September 2020

    New dismissal by the Court of Appeal

    The Paris Court of Appeal rejected the request to access internal documents of the company. According to the Court, the admissibility of the organisations’ legal action before the French judge has to be decided according to Congolese law.

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  • 9 March 2022

    Victory before the Court of cassation

    The Court ruled that the possibility for the CSOs to file this case was to be decided according to French law, and not foreign law as the company had claimed. The decision of the Cour of Appeal is consequently overruled.

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  • 9 November 2022

    Lawsuit before the Paris civil court

    Sherpa and Friends of the Earth France ask that Perenco S.A. be ordered to remedy the environmental damage caused in the DRC.

    Learn more

Impact

Why initiate legal action?

Sherpa

The law is a tool of power in a globalised world. It underpins power relations and encourages impunity for the most powerful. Because of their transnational nature, or the political and economic stakes involved, many violations escape justice. Bringing cases before the courts means putting the debate back on a legal footing, giving a voice to the people affected and thus restoring the legal tool to social movements.

Sherpa

Thanks to the work of NGOs and journalists, the consequences of globalisation are increasingly being documented and denounced. Our legal actions make it possible to initiate an contentious proceedings, establish the facts and apply the rules of law to these situations. They also aim to provide practical solutions by putting a stop to violations, holding the players concerned responsible and/or enabling victims to obtain compensation.

Sherpa

In support of our advocacy and in parallel with our legal laboratory and capacity-sharing activities, our legal actions are designed to contribute to wider and lasting change. They fuel public debate to highlight the limits of the legal framework and the obstacles facing the victims of globalised capitalism. They set precedents that shape a more protective legal framework.

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