FILIPINO survivors of super typhoon Odette (Rai) have filed a civil case in a United Kingdom court, taking a decisive step to hold oil giant Shell accountable for the deaths, injuries, and destruction left by the climate-fueled storm.
What the survivors announced last October has now become a full legal action that Shell is compelled to answer in court.
The survivors are seeking compensation for deaths, injuries, and property losses linked to the storm.
The case was filed on Thursday, Dec. 11, 2025, by a British law firm representing 103 survivors from Cebu, Bohol, and neighboring provinces. The plaintiffs are asking the UK court to hold Shell accountable for its historical greenhouse gas emissions and to order measures that would curb what they describe as destructive fossil fuel activities.
Pedia Fajardo, 59, of Barangay Inayawan, Cebu City, is among the petitioners. She said poor communities continue to suffer the harshest impacts of climate change.
“Kaming kabus ang mag-suffer… maayo man ang mga dato kay makabalhin og puy-anan, kami naa rami dira (It is us poor who suffer the most. The wealthy can move to safer places, but people like us have nowhere else to go),” Fajardo told SunStar Cebu in a protest rally held in Cebu City on Thursday, Dec. 11.
Fajardo said the group brought the case abroad to compel Shell to address the worsening effects of climate change.
“Usa na sa among gi-complain tungod coal man gud ilang gipanggamit… mobuga baya na og dagkong aso (Among our complaints is their use of coal which releases massive amounts of smoke),” she said.
She added that communities cannot take on global corporations on their own, that is why they need the help of powerful institutions.
Climate change
The filing was announced in the Philippines during a press conference in Quezon City attended by eight of the petitioners, along with Greenpeace Philippines, the Philippine Movement for Climate Justice (PMCJ), and the Legal Rights and Natural Resources Center (LRC).
The groups cited scientific research that showed human-induced climate change more than doubled the likelihood and intensity of Odette, the strongest typhoon of 2021, which killed 405 people, injured 1,371, and caused at least P34.4 billion in damages.
They said Shell is responsible for more than 41 billion tonnes of CO2 equivalent, over two percent of global fossil fuel emissions, and continued to expand oil and gas investments despite climate warnings.
Advocates said the legal action is bolstered by the International Court of Justice’s recent Advisory Opinion on Climate Change, which emphasizes the responsibility of governments to regulate corporate emitters whose activities affect populations beyond their borders.
PMCJ Cebu convenor Teodorico Navea said the filing represents a significant step for disaster-stricken communities in pushing for accountability from major polluters.
Organizers confirmed the petitioners were unable to attend the filing in the UK after their visa applications were denied.
Climate justice groups said the landmark case adds to global efforts to challenge the long-standing impunity of fossil fuel companies whose operations have contributed to worsening climate impacts in vulnerable countries like the Philippines. / CDF