Greenpeace US Senior Legal Advisor, Deepa Padmanabha, left, talks with Greenpeace US Interim Executive Director Sushma Raman, center, and Greenpeace International Attorney Kristin Casper © Tim Aubry / Greenpeace
MANDAN, N.D. (May 27, 2025) – In a second post-trial hearing, District Court Judge Gion decided to withhold any rulings as Greenpeace defendants again met Energy Transfer plaintiffs in a North Dakota state court. It is the same court where a jury in March found Greenpeace Inc., Greenpeace Fund, and Greenpeace International liable for a perverse amount of damages of more than $660 million. Tuesday’s hearing addressed a request by Greenpeace defendants for the Court to rule in their favor on all claims — despite the jury reaching a different conclusion — because the evidence presented at trial was legally insufficient to rule in Energy Transfer’s favor.
Deepa Padmanabha, Senior Legal Advisor, Greenpeace USA said: “Today’s hearing exemplifies Energy Transfer’s weaponization of what solidarity means. Their inflammatory rhetoric and efforts to mischaracterize constitutionally protected conduct do not change the fact that, almost eight years later, there is still no evidence to support the claims in this case. As we enter this next chapter in our legal saga, we will continue to expose their blatant attempts to rewrite the history of the Indigenous-led resistance at Standing Rock and Greenpeace’s role.”
Kristin Casper, General Counsel, Greenpeace International said: “We presented clear arguments for the dismissal of all legal claims against Greenpeace International, which the North Dakota Court has no jurisdiction over to begin with. The only piece of evidence of the actions of Greenpeace International that Energy Transfer has complained about is a single letter of solidarity that Greenpeace International signed on to, along with 500 other organizations, directed at banks outside of North Dakota, and that is clearly protected free speech. The District Court has a duty to step in and correct errors, and now is the time for the Court to enter a judgment in favor of Greenpeace International.”
Following decisions on post-trial motions, the entering of a final judgment by Judge Gion is the next step in the Mandan proceedings. This will start the clock for the appeal process to the North Dakota Supreme Court. A first administrative hearing in Greenpeace International’s counter-suit against Energy Transfer will take place on July 2, 2025 in the first-ever use of European Union’s new anti-SLAPP law.
Contact: Madison Carter, Greenpeace USA Senior Communications Specialist, [email protected]
Greenpeace USA is part of a global network of independent campaigning organizations that use peaceful protest and creative communication to expose global environmental problems and promote solutions that are essential to a green and peaceful future. Greenpeace USA is committed to transforming the country’s unjust social, environmental, and economic systems from the ground up to address the climate crisis, advance racial justice, and build an economy that puts people first. Learn more at www.greenpeace.org/usa.
