La Brea Environ Protectors (Appellant) v The Petroleum Company of Trinidad and Tobago and another (Respondents) (Trinidad & Tobago)

Case summary

Case ID

JCPC/2025/0088

Jurisdiction

Trinidad and Tobago

Parties

Appellant(s)

LA BREA ENVIRONMENT PROTECTORS

Respondent(s)

The Petroleum Company of Trinidad and Tobago

OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH AUTHORITY

Issue

Did the trial judge err in dismissing LBEP’s application to permit five of its members to be added as parties to the claim and allowed to represent La Brea Environment Protectors' (“LBEP”) remaining members? Did the Court of Appeal err in upholding the trial judge’s ruling?

Facts

In December 2013, oil spills occurred in a rural village in southern Trinidad called La Brea. LBEP was formed as a non-profit organisation in January 2014 and incorporated in May 2014. It claimed that all its members were residents of La Brea and were adversely affected by the oil pollution. LBEP also contended that the pollution was attributable to oil spills emanating from Petrotrin’s pipelines. In addition, LBEP filed a claim against the Occupational Safety and Health Authority (“OSHA”) owing to OSHA’s alleged failure to ensure that Petrotrin was compliant with statutory standards required by the Occupational Safety and Health Act, Chapter 88:08. The matter has a protracted procedural history. LBEP’s claim was originally filed against the Petrotrin and OSHA on 7 August 2014. On 11 May 2018, LBEP filed an application seeking an order by which the Court would appoint LBEP to act as representative in the proceedings for its members, or alternatively, that leave be granted to one hundred and one named members to be substituted and/or added as individual claimants to the claim. This application was dismissed by the High Court on 17 July 2018. LBEP’s appeal against that decision was dismissed by the Court of Appeal on 4 February 2019. LBEP made a further appeal to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council (“JCPC”), but this was also dismissed on 23 May 2022. Importantly, on 3 May 2019 (approximately three months after the Court of Appeal’s ruling), LBEP applied separately for five named members of LBEP to be added as individual claimants to the claim and for those members to act as representatives in the proceedings for the remainder of LBEP’s members. The JCPC in its 2022 judgment did not rule on the 3 May 2019 application, preferring instead for this to be dealt with by the trial judge. On 4 November 2024, the trial judge dismissed the application filed on 3 May 2019 and required LBEP to pay costs to the defendants fit for senior and junior counsel for one and a half hours. On appeal against the trial judge’s ruling, the Court of Appeal dismissed LBEP’s appeal and ordered each party to bear their own costs. On 28 May 2025, the Court of Appeal refused to grant LBEP conditional leave to appeal to the JCPC. LBEP now seeks special leave to appeal to the JCPC.

Date of issue

8 September 2025

Case origin

PTA

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