In a somewhat surprising development, Justice MacPherson, who wrote the Ontario Court of Appeals’s decision in Yaiguaje v. Chevron, has stayed that decision pending the outcome of Chevron’s application to the Supreme Court of Canada. The decision was surprising—to me, at least, though I welcome the view of Canadian lawyers—because of the tenuousness of Chevron’s claim of irreparable harm: Chevron pointed to the risk that if it won, it might be unable to recover the costs of the proceedings form the Lago Agrio plaintiffs. These costs are, of course, minuscule compared to what is at stake in the case, but Justice MacPherson felt it was enough to justify a stay.

Here is a copy of the papers Chevron filed with the Supreme Court, and here are the papers that Chevron’s Canadian subsidiary filed.