Nigerian communities sue Shell over oil spills

U.K. law firm Leigh Day & Co. has filed a suit on behalf of 11,317 people and 17 institutions from the Niger Delta region against Royal Dutch Shell P.L.C. at the London high court, seeking compensation for loss of livelihoods and damage due to years of oil spills, Reuters reported. This is the latest step in a case that will test whether multinationals can be held to account for the actions of overseas subsidiaries.

Oil spills resulting from Shell’s operations destroyed farms, contaminated drinking water, and harmed aquatic life, but, Shell claims that most of the spills were caused by illegal third-party interference.