Bananas!*

People die every day in this community.

Pesticides have cast a shadow of death over all of western Nicaragua.

To increase profits and production,

without considering the consequences for the people in the area,

they spread tons of pesticides in the banana plantations.

The plantations do provide work, but they are also the source of slow death.

My fatherwas a hard-working man.

He made an honest living at the banana plantations.

Dad was very active in the struggle for indemnity forthe victims of Nemagon.

He always talked about the cowworkers who passed away from the side effects.

And he never lost hope.

Your best choice: Juan Jose Dominguez, attorney-at-law

Good morning, law office ofJuan Dominguez...

ls it a workers' compensation case or personal injury?

Car accident? Okay...

Hello, William. How are you? l'm Juan Dominguez, the attorney.

ls this your sister? - Hi, pleased to meet you.

William, i understand you were hit by an ambulance?

-And it didn't have its sirens on? - No, the lights weren't on, either.

l was knocked out.

- You were alone in the car? -Yes...

- Did you wake up at the hospital? - l woke up at the hospital.

l do not like when other people are exploited.

l've never liked it, since l was a little kid.

l never liked the big guy picking on the little guy.

l became a lawyer because l wanted to represent people that needed help.

We need some doctors to evaluate you. We need to evaluate the records,

and make sure that you're not cheated from this case...

because some doctor misdiagnosed you or under-diagnosed you.

Juan Dominguez has won more than USD 100 million for his clients.

He has received the "Super Lawyer" award three years in a row!

Thanks to him, l received 4.5 million USD.

Hi, l'm Juan Dominguez, your legal counsel for serious accidents.

lf we don't win, we don't charge you. That's only fair.

Dominguez is fair and he's needed! Dial 800-818-1818.

l've been a personal injury lawyer, taking on mostly disadvantaged clients

that could never afford a lawyer in their lives.

We take cases on a contingency basis: lf l don't win, l don't get paid.

l started advertising the day l opened my law office.

Basically, from day one...

l started in a suite for 400 dollars.

Had a common receptionist and a common waiting room...

And l worked my way up from there.

About five years ago, I saw this CNN report from Chinandega

investigating this pesticide, dibromochloropropane, DBCP.

l decided to come down pretty much on an exploratory mission.

To me, personally, this will be the biggest thing l've ever handled.

- What is this? - lt's an irrigation pump.

lt fed the water and the Nemagon into the cannons.

- The sprinklers inside the plantation? - Yes, up on a turret.

- They sprayed water and Nemagon. -Amixture?

About 600 people worked on this farm. This is where they slept.

The banana plants were just over there.

The spray would enterthe dormitory.

And the fumes would envelop the workers who slept here?

The solution dripped down from the roof, too.

We were able to meet with banana workers,

union leaders, local attorneys...

They came to my hotel to seek me out,

because the word got out really fast throughout the province

that someone was here from the US that spoke Spanish

and was actually Latin, and is actually a US lawyer,

and had a decent crew of amiable humanitarian-type workers with him

that were also Latin and spoke Spanish.

lt just seemed like we had the calling to get involved.

l've never experienced anything like that in my life.

- Which plantation did you work for? - Candelaria.

- Did you sleep there? -Yes.

Did you work with the machete or put on plastic bags?

l worked with the machete.

And when you were chopping, did liquid drip on your head and clothes?

Yes, the poison was up there because they shot it into the air.

- Yes, with the cannons. - lt dripped down from the leaves.

-And it got on your clothes? -Yes.

And the Fumazone got on your body?

There are over 10,000 Nicaraguan banana workers

claiming that they have been harmed by DBCP,

known worldwide under the names Nemagon and Fumazone.

That's the irrigation system. And the cannon.

This is the San Pablo plantation.

lt sprayed the camp as well.

This is the Candelaria plantation.

Families lived inside the farm area.

Are these the dormitories?

This is a Nemagon barrel. And Fumazone.

That's a barrel down there. And one more.

There's another one... Fumazone.

The Dow Chemical brand. Fumazone barrels made into a stove.

DBCPwas produced by the Dow Chemical Co.

Early on, it was known to cause severe side effects:

cancers, kidney, and other grave health problems.

ln the 70s, it was banned in the US for causing sterility,

but Standard Fruit, now the Dole Food Company,

kept using it in the banana plantations around the world.

And now, 35 years later, we find that the banana workers are sterile.

- Do you know how to read and write? - No, l can barely sign my name.

- Do you speak any other languages? - l can't even write.

- Do you have a phone number? - No.

- How many children do you have? - l don't have any.

But you have a woman? So what happened?

l was a young man in '7 1 and l saw this girl...

l was raised in a religious way.

ln 197 1, l saw this girl...

And during the last months ofthat year...

- Did you have any children with her? - No, l abstained.

Toward the end ofthat year, we got engaged.

I made a promise, and went to find work.

That's when l came here to work, from '71 to '7 4.

You know, in this case you've got real poor people...

...disadvantaged, very poorly educated,

against corporations that are very powerful, wealthy, knowledgeable...

And the odds are just really against these clients.

Please empty your pockets. Your shirt pocket, too.

- That's all there is. - Okay.

So here's your bottle. You know what to do?

l'll be next door so just let me know. Even if you can't manage.

l've just received the lab results.

You are suffering from a condition called oligospermia.

You are almost completely sterile.

ls that all?

lt's practically impossible for you to father children.

l am interviewing a group of plaintiffs,

and during these interviews it has become apparent

that up to this day, they had no knowledge

that this chemical is the reason that they go

from woman... to woman...

to woman... to woman...

...without having children.

There are afflicted people who think that their women have betrayed them.

But l tell them, let me correct you:

lt is not the woman who betrayed you, it's the chemical.

And to this day, the corporations have refused to take responsibility.

They suppress the dangerous effects, and their motive is money.

Predatory capitalism...

And the truth of the matter is: these deeds are horrific.

lnexcusable.

l will not turn my back on the violations

committed by these gigantic corporations.

I'm honored to fight for you.

UNlTED... WE WlN!

And we'll win in their country. With their own judges,

their own lawyers, their own jury, and their own law!

Because UNlTED, WE WlN!

l've been dialing... calling the cell phones. l've been calling the landline.

l've been calling Roberto Tercero. l've been trying to lM.

l've tried the Voice Over lP. l can't get a hold of anybody.

Get me somebody in Nicaragua l can talk to, so l can get things done.

Thank you.

It's been five and a half years I've been involved in this project...

And we've spent a lot of money.

No law firm has had success in trying a case in the US.

We're the first.

l need 47...

l need 47, please.

l just set it on the couch. Do you want an individual copy orthe binder?

lndividual copies. Stapled, posted, and stating the exhibit number.

Duane is the best lawyer l've ever known.

Hands down. He's a lawyer's lawyer.

He defends municipalities, city governments,

against corporations that have polluted underground water,

drinking waterfor citizens.

He handles opposition that is just monumental.

l know l was up against some ofthe biggest multinational corporations

in the world, not just the US.

So l partnered with the best l can partner with,

and that's Duane Miller.

We're in a position as lawyers to bring pressure on witnesses

to settle the claims and...

...and without lawyers' involvement l don't see any way Dole would ever pay

any meaningful money. They certainly haven't in the past couple of decades.

So, by holding corporations accountable

ultimately, you may make them responsible.

- That was a great pitch... - Wait until you hearthe next one.

Anyway...

lt's going to be a long week.

We're tackling two giants,

that are basically throwing all their weight against two small law firms.

So it's going to be at a high, high cost,

in the context of putting all our finances and resources

and employees, and you name it, to bear.

They're thumping at us as hard as they can. They're big, and they can thump.

And we can thump back...

But they have basically unlimited resources and money.

Back in the matter of"Tellez vs Dole"... Be seated.

312852. The record should reflect that we now have all 12 jurors present.

Duane Miller is present for the plaintiffs.

Rick McKnight, James Teater, Dave DiMeglio, Erin Burke,

Michael Carter are here for Dole.

When l talked to you in the jury selection process,

many of you said, because you had prior experience in other cases,

you said: "l want to decide it based on the evidence."

"l want to decide it based on the facts."And l asked one of you:

"Do you think people have the right to defend their honest beliefs?"

And you said: "Oh, sure". And the rest of you said "Yes, we agree with that."

Dole has hired Rick McKnight as their lead trial lawyer.

One ofthe most successful and well- paid defense attorneys in the country.

Defendants don't have the burden of proof, of showing no causation.

Plaintiffs have the burden of proof

to show that they were exposed to DBCP and it caused their injury.

lt's the plaintiffs' burden, and they're accusing my clients