One of the investors of Lajun, the former operator of the National District and Province of Santo Domingo garbage dump, has announced that he has filed a lawsuit against the Dominican government for the illegal expropriation of their investment. The Ministry of Environment overrode the entity when it failed to meet minimum services required of the garbage deposit. The Ministry has said it has not been notified of the lawsuit.
The notification of the lawsuit was made by Jamaican investor Michael Lee-Chin, who maintains that the actions of the Dominican government violate Annex III of the CARICOM Free Trade Agreement, and is demanding US$300 million in damages, or he will take the case to international arbitration.
The writ was issued against President Danilo Medina, the Attorney General, the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and SMEs and the National Audit Office by United States lawyers Hogan Lovells, based in Miami, Florida, represented by Richard C. Lorenzo.
In the claim, the lawyers state that due to clear and flagrant violations by the state of their obligations under the treaty, the investor has suffered significant moral and economic damages.
The lawyers warn that if the state does not express its willingness to resolve the issue within a three month time frame, the investor reserves his right to go to an international arbitration court.
It explains that significant investments were made in the garbage dump but that the company was ejected from the site by force and the use of the military, making this an illegal expropriation.
Read more in Spanish:
Listin Diario
21 December 2017
