Greenpeace in a $300M lawsuit that could end the nonprofit

Energy Transfer Partners’s lawsuit against Greenpeace went on trial in North Dakota yesterday. According to the environmental advocacy group, if it loses the case, it might have to shut down.

Energy Transfer accuses Greenpeace, its grant-making arm, and Greenpeace International of financially harming the company by supporting protestors of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe in 2016 and 2017 against the Dakota Access Pipeline’s construction. It claims the delays in the project cost the company $300 million in damages. It has taken the nonprofit to court for the same amount.

A federal court dismissed the case, but the company refiled in state court.

The $3.8 billion Dakota Access Pipeline transports crude oil 1,172 miles from North Dakota to Illinois.

Greenpeace denies wrongdoing, calling the case a Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation (SLAPP) case meant to silence activism.

What’s next?
Jury selection started Monday in Mandan, North Dakota. The trial is expected to last five weeks. If Greenpeace loses, it could face financial ruin, but the group vows to continue its fight against fossil fuels.