MANDAN, N.D. (September 10, 2025) – In response to North Dakota District Court Judge James Gion rejecting Energy Transfer’s request for an anti-suit injunction in Greenpeace International’s landmark anti-intimidation lawsuit, Greenpeace USA Interim Executive Director, Sushma Raman, said:
“From the beginning, we have said the truth is on our side. Energy Transfer must understand their attempts to abuse our legal system and bully their way to a win will never supersede the law. I applaud our allies at Greenpeace International for taking full advantage of the new anti-SLAPP directive in the European Union to make them whole after this gross abuse of the law and drain on financial resources. It’s the exact reason Greenpeace USA continues to push for similar anti-SLAPP protections at the federal level in the United States. Until then, we remain committed to exposing the lawsuit in North Dakota for what it really is: an act of corporate intimidation trying to silence Indigenous voices and their allies.”
You can read more from Greenpeace International and find all of the available legal filings here.
CONTACT: Madison Carter, Greenpeace USA National Press Secretary, [email protected]
For more than 50 years, Greenpeace USA has responsibly practiced non-violent direct action (NVDA) to expose global environmental problems and promote solutions essential to a green, just, and joyful future for people and the planet. In 2017, Energy Transfer, the company behind the controversial Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL), sued Greenpeace entities (Greenpeace Inc. & Greenpeace Fund based in the U.S., and Greenpeace International) for $300 million in federal court, alleging that the entities violated the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) — a federal statute originally designed to eliminate mob activity. Specifically, Energy Transfer falsely accused the entities of organizing the historic #NoDAPL resistance at Standing Rock — a racist claim that attempts to undermine tribal sovereignty. This case has been widely recognized as a Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPP), a tactic used by corporations to silence constitutionally protected free speech and advocacy in the United States. In 2019, a federal judge dismissed the federal claims, prompting Energy Transfer to refile a nearly identical case in North Dakota state court — one of only 17 states with no anti-SLAPPprotections. The lawsuit went to a trial in February 2025 before a jury of North Dakotans, resulting in a profoundly unjust verdict that awarded Energy Transfer over $660 million in compensatory and punitive damages. Currently, the Greenpeace entities are still awaiting a final decision from the judge on post trial motions and entry of judgment.
Greenpeace USA will continue fighting back against this case, including by appealing to the North Dakota Supreme Court.
For more information, visit: https://www.greenpeace.org/usa/energy-transfer-lawsuit/
