‘Weed 9’ Water Activists Present Legal Claim Against Sacramento Law Firm for Filing Malicious Lawsuit Aimed at Silencing Free Speech

April 30, 2020
Tags: #WaterRights, Weed 9
The Weed, California, community members claim Churchwell White LLP knowingly filed meritless and illegal SLAPP suit against them on behalf of Roseburg Forest Products. Eugene, OR, April 29, 2020 — Protect the Protest task force member Civil Liberties Defense Center (CLDC) filed a lawsuit in the Siskiyou County Superior Court of… Read More
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A Letter to Southern NY Court: Open Donziger’s Trial

May 04, 2021
Tags: Chevron, Steven Donziger
Chief Judge Laura Taylor SwainDaniel Patrick Moynihan United States CourthouseCourtroom 17C 500 Pearl St. New York, NY 10007-1312 Judge Loretta PreskaDaniel Patrick Moynihan United States CourthouseCourtroom 12A 500 Pearl St. New York, NY 10007-1312 Chief Judge Debra Ann LivingstonUnited States Court of Appeals for the Second CircuitThurgood Marshall U.S.Courthouse40 Foley SquareNew York, NY 10007… Read More
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AFTER FIVE-YEAR STRUGGLE, WEED, CA SECURES RIGHTS TO ITS SPRING WATER

March 11, 2021
Tags: Weed 9
March 11, 2021FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contacts:Jim Taylor, WCWC President 530-938-2080 taylors96094@att.netBruce Shoemaker, WCWC media liaison, 612-770-9697 bshoe@bitstream.netToday the Weed City Council approved an agreement which secures, in perpetuity, the City’s rights to the high quality Beaughan Springs water upon which our community has relied for more than 110 years. This… Read More
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Breaking: Donziger’s Appeal Denied, Must Report to Prison Wednesday

October 26, 2021
Tags: Chevron, Donziger
Congress, International Groups Demand Chevron Stop Targeting Activists and Attorney General Garland to Release US Human Rights Lawyer  FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE October 26, 2021. Washington DC,  After an unprecedented 800+ days of home detention, human rights attorney Steven Donziger, who helped win the historic $9.5 billion judgment against Chevron… Read More
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Celebrating Three Years of Protecting the Protest

September 02, 2021
Three years of Protect the Protest, but the fight is not over! Three years ago a wide range of  organizations across different sectors, including Greenpeace, Amazon Watch, ICAR, CLDC, and many others, launched the Protect the Protest task force taking aim at corporations and people in positions of power who… Read More
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Chevron: Protect the Protest’s Corporate Bully of the Year

May 29, 2019
Tags: Chevron, CorporateBully, RICO
Today, activists gathered outside Chevron’s annual meeting to tell CEO Michael Wirth that the company must stop being a corporate bully. Speakers at the event said that the company has spent over $2 billion and engaged over 2,000 lawyers to avoid accountability for its environmental violations in Ecuador. Share this… Read More
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Civil Liberties Defense Center to Represent Environmental and Human Rights Lawyer Steven Donziger

May 18, 2020
Tags: Chevron, Steven Donziger
Contact: Lauren Regan, CLDC(541) 687-9180 On May 15, 2020, Civil Liberties Defense Center’s (CLDC) Executive Director & Senior Staff Attorney, Lauren Regan, officially joined Steven Donziger’s legal team as a lead trial attorney. In addition to Regan and former New York federal prosecutor Andrew Frisch, the team now includes nationally… Read More
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Communities Demand Accountability and an End to Chevron’s Pollution

May 21, 2021
For Immediate Release May 21, 2021 Contacts: Shoshana Wechsler at swechs@sonic.net +1.510.332.4110 Nyunt Than at nyuntthan@gmail.com +1.510.220.1323  Paul Paz y Miño at paz@amazonwatch.org +1.510.773.4635 Communities Demand Accountability and an End to Chevron’s Pollution During the 8th annual Anti-Chevron Day, affected frontline communities from around the world continue… Read More
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Court Agrees: Logging Giant Can’t Bully Advocates Again

January 26, 2021
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEJanuary 26, 2021 Contacts: Lauren Regan, Executive Director and Senior Staff AttorneyCivil Liberties Defense Center(541) 687-9180 or info@cldc.org Valentina Stackl, Senior Communications SpecialistGreenpeace USA and Protect the Protest(734) 276 6260 vstackl@greenpeace.org  Oakland, CA— Last Thursday United States Magistrate Judge Kandis A. Westmore of the United States District Court, Northern… Read More
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Court Dismisses Abusive Dakota Access Pipeline Company Lawsuit Against Activists and Environmental Groups

February 15, 2019
Tags: Dakota Access, DAPL, Energy Transfer, ETP, Greenpeace, Krystal Two Bulls, RICO, SLAPP
February 15, 2019, North Dakota – Late yesterday, a federal judge dismissed all claims in a sprawling $900 million dollar lawsuit filed against Krystal Two Bulls, an Oglala Lakota and Northern Cheyenne organizer, Greenpeace, and others, by Energy Transfer— the corporation behind the controversial Dakota Access… Read More
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District Judge Dismisses Corporate-led Racketeering Claims Against Activist Groups

January 23, 2019
Tags: Greenpeace, Resolute, RICO, SLAPP
Washington, D.C. – Yesterday, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California dismissed baseless Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) claims brought by Resolute Forest Products attacking the free speech of environmental defenders at different Greenpeace entities, Stand.Earth, and five individual defendants. The court also… Read More
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Don’t Mess With Texas’ Anti-SLAPP Law

May 18, 2023
Tags: Anti-SLAPP Laws, SLAPP, Texas
Protect the Protest member org, Electronic Frontier Foundation wrote this important blog post about the Texas anti-SLAPP law that’s under threat. See the original post here. Update 5/18/23: News reports indicate that this bill’s language has also been added to a separate bill, Texas House Bill 3129. Texas lawmakers should vote no.  Over… Read More
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Environmental Groups, Activists Win Dismissal of Lawsuit Filed by Dakota Access Pipeline Company

February 15, 2019
Tags: Dakota Access, Dakota Access Pipeline, DAPL, Greenpeace, Krystal Two Bulls, RICO, SLAPP, Standing Rock
Racketeering Conspiracy Lawsuit Against Krystal Two Bulls and Other Pipeline Protesters Dismissed February 15, 2019 – Late yesterday, a federal judge dismissed a sprawling racketeering lawsuit filed against Krystal Two Bulls, an Oglala Lakota and Northern Cheyenne organizer, Greenpeace,… Read More
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Federal Court Dismisses $900 Million Pipeline Company Lawsuit Against Greenpeace

February 14, 2019
Tags: Dakota Access, Dakota Access Pipeline, Energy Transfer, ETP, Greenpeace, RICO, SLAPP
BISMARCK, February 14, 2019 — Today, the United States District Court for the District of North Dakota issued a landmark dismissal [1] of all claims against all defendants in the USD$900 million case against Greenpeace and others brought by Energy Transfer [2]. The decision to dismiss this lawsuit, which alleged… Read More
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Have you met Donny Rico?

October 29, 2019
Tags: Amazon Watch, Chevron, RICO
One form of SLAPP attacks is the use of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) to intimidate activists, lawyers and organizations. The Chevron RICO case launched against attorney Steven Donziger, other Ecuadorian lawyers and several Ecuadorian plaintiffs is a prime example of this tactic. Chevron also named many… Read More
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How corporate SLAPP lawsuits endanger our rights and the planet

May 23, 2023
Tags: Anti-SLAPP Laws, CorporateBully, EFF, Greenpeace, SLAPP
Chris Greenberg, an editor at Greenpeace International, a Protect the Protest member org wrote this blog post. See the original here. Hope creates the conditions for climate action. And climate action nurtures hope. Just as hope and action have a reinforcing relationship, so do fear and silence.  The polluting… Read More
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Human Rights Watch: Green Activists are Fighting the Great Fight – but are being Dragged Down by Petty Lawsuits

May 10, 2019
Tags: Human Rights Watch, mining, Newsweek, South Africa
In Newsweek, Marcos Orellana of Human Rights Watch describes how companies worldwide are bringing baseless lawsuits against environmental activists. As Orellana describes, the purpose of this tactic is “to suppress environmental defenders’ effectiveness by intimidating them and burdening them with… Read More
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International Organizations Demand DOJ Review Chevron’s Retaliatory Litigation against Human Rights Attorney Steven Donziger

February 17, 2021
Tags: Chevron, Ecuador, Steven Donziger
Read the letter here Washington, D.C. – Thirteen international human rights and environmental watchdog organizations sent an open letter to the U.S. Department of Justice asking it to launch a high-level review of the retaliatory “SLAPP” lawsuits Chevron brought against the lawyer who helped 30,000 Indigenous peoples… Read More
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Last Week Tonight with John Oliver Tackles SLAPPs

December 09, 2019
In 2017, John Oliver produced a segment on Last Week Tonight that took aim at the American coal industry and specifically targeted Murray Energy, a coal company that has been subject to numerous environmental and labor lawsuits. Murray Energy’s coal baron CEO, Robert Murray, brought a defamation lawsuit against John… Read More
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Maggy Hurchalla, sued by a mining company, tells you to keep your chin up!

July 24, 2020
Tags: Defamation, Florida, limestone mining, Maggy Hurchalla
“Can you be sued for trying to save the world?” Maggy Hurchalla Two years ago, a jury decided Maggy Hurchalla, 79 years old, should pay $4.4 million to Lake Point Restoration, a company running limestone mining operations in Martin County, Florida.  A lifelong Florida resident, Ms. Hurchalla came… Read More
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New Video: Protecting the Right to Protest and Defeating Corporate Bullies

May 24, 2023
Tags: Amazon Watch, Anti-SLAPP Laws, Chevron, CorporateBully, SLAPP
Paul Paz y Miño, at Amazon Watch, a Protect the Protest member org wrote this blog post. See the original here. Despite growing global public awareness about the role of extractive industries in the climate crisis, the public’s right to speak out and challenge corporations harming people and… Read More
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Presenting the Third Annual SLAPPies Awards!

September 21, 2021
In reflecting on the last year, we at the Protect the Protest task force are in awe of the power of community organizing. We believe in the strength of people across the country demanding racial justice, climate accountability, and safe and equitable working environments. At the same time, we are… Read More
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Protect the Protest Solidarity Letter with Atlanta Forest Defenders

June 30, 2023
Tags: Atlanta
The community-led resistance to stop the destruction of the Weelaunee Forest in Atlanta and prevent the creation of a militarized police training facility — known as the “Stop Cop City” effort — has made its opposition known through every constitutionally protected measure available. Since 2019, nearby residents, members of the… Read More
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Protect the Protest Task Force Presents Second Annual SLAPP Awards

June 25, 2020
Tags: Chevron, Devin Nunes, Lawfare, SLAPPies
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Tongue-in-cheek SLAPPies honors worst legal bullies, including Chevron, Devin Nunes, and the Lawfare Project  Washington DC. June 25, 2020 . Last year was another banner year for legal intimidation, aggressive lawsuits, and bullying tactics in the United States. Corporate bullies increasingly resorted to using Strategic Lawsuits Against… Read More
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Protect the Protest Task Force Presents Third Annual SLAPPies

September 22, 2021
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Protect the Protest task force presents third annual SLAPPies awards, dishonoring 2021’s most illustrious legal bullies  It is with great shame and sadness that we present the third annual SLAPPies, the anti-award show where we highlight the serial SLAPPers of the year in hopes of putting… Read More
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PtP Taskforce Expanding Scope of Work

May 24, 2022
Right now, the rights of protesters in the U.S. are at a critical crossroads. We are witnessing both an expansion of policies that threaten the safety of marginalized people and communities, and an uptick in repressive anti-protest measures. In response to recent legal and legislative backlash against activists, the Protect… Read More
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Revoke Chevron’s License to Spill!

June 11, 2021
 Justice must be served in the Amazon In an effort to shareChevron’s widespread harms in a new, engaging way, the Protect the Protest task force is proud to launch our License to Spill campaign. Our hope is to bring a wider audience into the fight for justice for the people… Read More
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SLAPP Defendant Brief Bank

July 22, 2022
This resource compiles relevant briefs for use in SLAPP defense. Please use this page to request, submit to, or access the brief bank. Open SLAPP Defendant Brief Bank If you already have the password, you can open the bank here. Open Brief Bank Submit Briefs for SLAPP Defendant… Read More
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SLAPPed for Speaking About Palestine

February 05, 2020
Tags: BDS, Colleges and Universities, Palestine
Strategic lawsuits against public participation (or SLAPPs) are a tactic used to intimidate activists, journalists, and grassroots organizations that speak out against wrongdoing. Recent years have seen a spike in the use of SLAPPs and related intimidation tactics in the ongoing attempt by powerful interests in the US to stop… Read More
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SLAPPies: Second Annual SLAPP Awards

June 25, 2020
Tags: Chevron, Devin Nunes, Lawfare, SLAPPies
It was another busy year of legal intimidation, aggressive lawsuits, and bully tactics! Disgruntled corporations and those in power sure didn’t make our second Annual SLAPP Awards easy! A SLAPP suit is a lawsuit aimed at silencing critics. Corporations and powerful people use this abusive tactic to intimidate activists and… Read More
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Statement in Solidarity with Minneapolis

May 28, 2020
Tags: Minneapolis, Movement for Black Lives, Police, Protest
Stopping SLAPPs and defending dissent is more than a slogan. It is the way we take action to stop those who would seek to abuse power and stifle the free speech of our communities. What we are seeing in Minnesota is an example of a community grieving the loss of… Read More
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Texas Should Leave Its Anti-SLAPP Law Alone

April 26, 2023
Tags: Anti-SLAPP Laws, EFF
Protect the Protest member org, Electronic Frontier Foundation wrote this important blog post about the Texas anti-SLAPP law that’s under threat. See the original post here. The Texas Citizens Participation Act, or TCPA, has been one of the strongest laws in the nation protecting citizens against lawsuits intended… Read More
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The ‘Weed 9’ Water Activists Win as Logging Company Drops SLAPP Lawsuit

December 19, 2019
Tags: Roseburg, Water is life, Weed 9
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                               Bruce Shoemaker, Media LiaisonWater for Citizens of Weed, California (WCWC)(612) 770-9697bshoe@bitstream.net  Valentina Stackl, Media LiaisonProtect the Protest Task Force(734) 276-6260vstackl@greenpeace.org WEED, CALIFORNIA – In a victory for free speech, Roseburg Forest Products agreed to drop its bullying lawsuit against… Read More
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The End Of A Lawsuit, But Not The End Of Injustice

May 19, 2020
Tags: Colleges and Universities, NLG, Palestine
This week, a member of the Protect the Protest task force, the National Lawyers Guild, settled a case with the Lawfare Project, an organization that has aggressively used the courts in an attempt to silence groups and individuals in the Justice for Palestine movement.  We’ve talked about Lawfare’s bullying… Read More
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The First Anniversary of the Protect the Protest Task Force Launch

September 26, 2019
One year ago this month, 25 social justice, environmental, and civil liberties organizations joined forces to form the Protect the Protest task force to combat the threat of Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPPs) and to lessen the destruction of this legal bullying tactic. We’ve had a year of important… Read More
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Timber Industry Sidesteps Request to Investigate U.S. Company’s Human Rights Violations

March 27, 2019
Tags: California, forestry, Oregon, Roseburg, timber, Weed
WEED, CALIFORNIA – The Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), the industry body that certifies “responsible timber,” has declined to investigate a complaint filed by Water for Citizens of Weed, California (WCWC) against Oregon-based Roseburg Forest Products. The complaint arose due to Roseburg’s use of abusive tactics in its bid… Read More
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Trump’s Mob Violence Reminds Us Why We Need To Defend Protest

January 25, 2021
We stand unequivocally behind the right to protest. And we stand unequivocally behind the fact that what happened on January 6, 2021 was NOT a protest. They were not protestors, but white supremacist, anti-democratic, insurrectionists attacking our country and our people.The organizers of the attack on the U.S. Capitol planned… Read More
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WE WILL NOT ENGAGE IN SLAPPs

September 23, 2023
Global Citizen and Protect the Protest’s Private Sector Anti-SLAPP Pledge Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPPs) are a growing threat to our freedom of speech and target major organizations and everyday citizens alike. Being able to voice issues of public concern is the quintessential American right and allows… Read More
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Court Shuts Down Monsanto’s SLAPP Against Avaaz

September 06, 2018
A Manhattan judge has denied an effort by agribusiness giant Monsanto to subpoena communications and privacy data from the campaigning group Avaaz. In issuing his decision, Judge Slomo Hagler said, “The subpoena itself would send a tremendous chilling effect through not… Read More
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Major Global NGOs Launch “Protect the Protest” Task Force

September 05, 2018
Tags: Launch, Protect the Protest
MEDIA CONTACT Kyle Moler kmoler@mrss.com (202) 478-6173 NEW YORK, NY — A new task force of organizations across different sectors, including the ACLU, Greenpeace, Freedom of the Press Foundation, the Electronic Frontier Foundation, EarthRights International, Rainforest Action Network, and the International… Read More
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Federal Judge Requested to Dismiss Standing Rock Suit by Greenpeace

September 05, 2018
Tags: ETP, Greenpeace
WASHINGTON, DC September 5, 2018 — Greenpeace filed motions to dismiss the amended complaint brought by Energy Transfer Partners in the baseless USD$900 million suit against  organizations, movements, and individuals that opposed the construction of the Dakota Access pipeline at the Standing Rock reservation. Read More
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Hollywood’s Notorious Men Retaliate Against #MeToo Movement

August 20, 2018
Tags: #MeToo
Valentina Stackl of EarthRights International discusses the pervasive use of SLAPPs against #MeToo survivors. Stackl writes, “As #MeToo survivors bravely share their experiences of sexual assault and intimate partner violence, they endure criticism, threats, and renewed emotional trauma. They also face retaliatory lawsuits.”… Read More
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