WASHINGTON, March 19, 2025— In a case that put the right to free speech on the line, a jury in North Dakota today found Greenpeace liable for hundreds of millions of dollars in damages claimed by Energy Transfer— the company behind the Dakota Access Pipeline— which sued the environmental group for its role in protest actions in 2016-2017.
The verdict, which penalizes Greenpeace for its involvement in Indigenous-led protests against the oil pipeline raises concerns about the implications for environmental advocacy, activism, and free speech more broadly.
Rebecca Brown, President and CEO of the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL) issues the following statement:
“The verdict against Greenpeace not only represents an assault on free speech and protest rights, but a calculated attack on the sovereign rights of the Standing Rock Sioux and all Indigenous Peoples defending their land and water. This case is a textbook example of corporate weaponization of the legal system to silence protest and intimidate communities. This misuse of the legal system stifles legitimate dissent and must be seen as a direct threat to environmental justice and democratic freedoms. Such tactics will not deter us, they only strengthen our commitment to resistance and solidarity and defense of the constitutionally-protected right to protest.
“The fight for a safe environment, clean water, and breathable air continues in North Dakota and beyond. No abusive company, lawsuit, or court decision will change that. The attacks on human rights, Indigenous Peoples, the climate, and those who dare to demand justice are growing more ruthless and lawless by the day. Instead of putting protest on trial, we need to put profit on trial. We must demand accountability from those who pollute our air, poison our water, threaten our health, and put our collective futures in jeopardy.”
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