‘A Loss to Ecosystem in the UK Supreme Court’s Decision in Jalla v Shell: Potentials of a ‘Reverse’ Business Model’

Abstract

The case of Jalla is one the many that have sought to or seeking to engage the responsibility of Shell in Nigeria for the impacts of its operations on the ecosystem, including the social and climate change impacts. Engaging the responsibility of Shell in Nigeria will always be paramount to the discourse of business responsibility for human rights and by extension to responsibility for environmental impacts (climate change impacts inclusive). The pertinent question before Shell and other multinational oil companies (MNOCs) operating in Nigeria and elsewhere is “for how long will they continue to defer their attributable responsibilities for their business impacts in the operating ecosystems”? Therefore, this short piece seeks to give insight into the Supreme Court’s decision in the Jalla’s case and project an argument that it is a loss to the ecosystem with a suggestion for applying a ‘reverse business model’ in corporate governance and responsibility.

Keywords: judicial remedy, BHR, MNOCs, ecological restoration, reverse business model (RBM)

JEL Classification: K