TheCable

A high court in the United Kingdom on Thursday ruled that Royal Dutch Shell cannot be sued by two Niger Delta communities.

Two separate legal actions had been initiated against Shell on behalf of 40,000 residents of Ogale and Bille communities in Rivers state.

Although the claimants had argued they could only get justice in British courts, the high court ruled that the case cannot be heard in the UK.

SPDC, Shell’s Nigerian subsidiary, had insisted that the case should be heard in Nigeria, noting that it was outside UK’s jurisdiction.

According to Reuters, legal experts say other claimants against British-based multinationals could have been encouraged to pursue legal action through British courts if the Nigerian communities had gotten a favourable ruling.