U.S. Supreme Court sides with Venezuela over oil rigs claim
Source: Reuters
Mon May 1, 2017 | 12:16pm EDT
By Lawrence Hurley | WASHINGTON
The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday tossed out a lower court's ruling that had allowed an American oil drilling company to sue Venezuela over the seizure of 11 drilling rigs in 2010 but allowed the business another chance to press its claims.
Siding with Venezuela, the justices ruled 8-0 that a lower court that had given the go-ahead for the suit must reconsider whether claims made by Oklahoma-based Helmerich & Payne International Drilling Company (HP.N) can proceed.
Writing for the court, Justice Stephen Breyer said the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit in 2015 used the wrong standard in denying Venezuela immunity from the lawsuit. Helmerich & Payne shares fell about 2 percent in midday trading after the ruling.
The company sued both the Venezuelan government and state-owned oil companies under a U.S. law called the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act, saying among other things that the property seizure violated international law.
Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-court-venezuela-idUSKBN17X1TL