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Delivered Via: Email [email protected] June 24, 2020

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Delivered Via: Email Lawsociety@Lso.Ca June 24, 2020 Delivered Via: Email [email protected] June 24, 2020 Convocation Law Society of Ontario 130 Queen St. W. Toronto, ON M5H 2N6 Dear Benchers: RE: Wrongful Detention of Human Rights Activist, Steven Donziger We are writing to bring to your attention the extraordinary treatment of New York human rights and environmental lawyer Steven Donziger. Steven was the successful counsel in winning a historic $9.5 billion pollution judgment against Chevron in Ecuador. The judgment has been affirmed by appellate courts in Ecuador, and litigation in Canada was brought seeking to enforce the award. The counsel team was led by Alan Lenczner. Our firm had the good fortune to work with Steven in the Canadian enforcement efforts. Based on our experiences with him and his colleagues from Ecuador and the United States, and having carefully reviewed the materials surrounding a RICO finding made against him by Kaplan J., we believe that Steven is a man of integrity, who has been the victim of a concerted effort to silence him and to thwart enforcement of the judgment against Chevron. Several prominent lawyers in the United States testified on his behalf at a recent bar hearing, where an attempt to have him disbarred failed. Over 475 lawyers and bar associations have issued a statement of support for Steven along with 29 Nobel peace laureates. (See https://iadllaw.org/2020/05/over-475-lawyers-legal- organizations-and-human-rights-defenders-support-lawyer-steven-donziger/ and https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5ac2615b8f5130fda4340fcb/t/5e9890f6d641a53d54479 2d6/1587056892216/2020-04-nobel-laureates-statement.pdf ). Two federal judges on the SDNY (Kaplan and Preska) last year charged Steven with misdemeanor criminal contempt after Steven refused to comply with an unprecedented order by Kaplan J. that he turn over his entire confidential case file to Chevron in the middle of the ongoing judgement enforcement litigation, including all solicitor-client privileged documents, and while an appeal from the order was pending. That appeal has not yet been decided. The United States District Attorney had declined Kaplan J’s request to prosecute Steven for criminal contempt, so Kaplan J. appointed lawyers to prosecute him. Recently, it has come to light that the law firm that is prosecuting Steven in the contempt matter has a solicitor-client relationship with Chevron. In a pending mandamus application, Steven argues that the prosecutor is not independent, and has a patent conflict of interest. 36 Toronto St Suite 1120 Toronto ON, M5C 2C5 waddellphillips.ca P a g e | 2 In the meantime, Steven has been detained at home without trial for more than ten months. He appears to be the only lawyer in U.S. history ever detained pre-trial on a contempt charge. His ten-month detention exceeds the maximum possible sentence if convicted, which is 6 months. We have been advised that the longest sentence ever imposed on a lawyer convicted of the same charge is 3 months of home confinement. Because of the pandemic, Steven's trial is getting pushed back, and there is no apparent end to his detention given that Preska J. won't release him. Of note, Steven was given an $800,000 bond -- $300,000 higher than the bond given the officer who just killed George Floyd. Steven also had his passport taken and he must wear an ankle bracelet 24/7. Steven lives with his wife and young son and obviously has no criminal record. The level of restrictions on Steven’s liberties seems extraordinary, and unwarranted. Conveniently for Chevron, while Steven is detained in his home, his work on judgment enforcement has been curtailed. The tautology behind this detention is simple: threaten prison and then detain Steven pre-trial because he might flee to avoid prison. This is the kind of "logic" we often see in authoritarian societies. It has the appearance of an abuse of power and an attack on the rule of law, in our view. Here are recent articles that describe Steven’s harsh treatment and provide background: https://theintercept.com/2020/05/20/steven-donziger-house-arrest-chevron/ https://www.thenation.com/article/activism/steven-donziger-chevron/ https://www.greenpeace.org/international/story/28741/steven-donziger-chevron-oil-amazon- contamination-injustice/ We are requesting that the Law Society of Ontario speak out against the ongoing pre-trial incarceration of Steven Donziger. His experience has been extraordinary. The lengths that have been taken to stop his efforts, extreme. We are unaware of any other human rights activist who has been so harshly treated in the courts of the United States. The risks to the rule of law and to a bar that can advocate for their clients without fear of state retaliation are apparent. Yours truly, Waddell Phillips Professional Corporation Margaret L. Waddell John K. Phillips A. Julia P. Tremain MLW/m 36 Toronto St. Suite 1120 Toronto ON, M5C 2C5 waddellphillips.ca .
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