SAN FRANCISCO – A petition for an order to confirm a nearly $18 billion foreign arbitration award has been filed against Chevron in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.
The petition was filed by dozens of Saudi Arabians who were awarded a 67,292,475,000 Saudi Riyals judgment in 2015 by an arbitration panel, which equates to $17.9 billion.
The arbitration award involved oil-rich land that was deeded to the petitioners and allegedly seized by Chevron. The individuals sought compensation for the rental value of the land.
The heirs of Sheikh Abdullah Al-Solaiman Al-Hamdan and Sheikh Khalid Abu AlWaleed Al-Oarqani filed the arbitration award against Chevron, Aramco, Chevron U.S.A. and Chevron Saudi Arabia on June 3, 2015. The award was issued by the International Arbitration Center (IAC) in Cairo, Egypt.
The individuals claimed they attempted to return to the land that was passed down to them by deceased family members in 2005 and Chevron refused to return the lands to them.
The individuals claimed the defendants did not appeal the arbitral award within 60 days of it being issued and the award was final on Aug. 2, 2015. Chevron had been made aware of the proceedings with the IAC.
Once the award was final, the individuals sought to confirm the award in the United States.
The individuals believe federal court should confirm the arbitration award under the New York Convention (NYC) and the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA), which states that within three years of the award, "any party to the arbitration may apply for an order confirming the award as against any other party to the arbitration," according to the petition.
The petitioners believe the award should be confirmed under the NYC and FAA because it requires Chevron and others to pay the amounts due to them that would fulfill all the claims against Chevron.
Edward C. Chung and Dima N. Malhas of Chung, Malhas & Mantel; and Nicole Jadelrab of the Law Offices of Nicole Jadelrab, represent the petitioners..
U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California case number: 3:18-cv-03297