South African telecoms giant MTN is set to enter the next major stage of a long-running legal battle in the United States after a New York court rejected its request to reconsider an earlier ruling.
The decision means the Zobay v. MTN Group Limited case, along with the related Long v. MTN Group Limited matter, will now move into the discovery phase.
For MTN, this is an important procedural step because discovery is when both sides can formally obtain and exchange evidence relevant to the claims being made.
According to Business Tech, the cases stem from allegations connected to MTN’s former operations in countries including Afghanistan, Syria and Iran. Among the claims made against the company is an allegation that it paid protection money to the Taliban to safeguard its telecommunications towers, which the plaintiffs argue helped finance terrorist activity and contributed to the deaths of US military personnel.
MTN has consistently denied wrongdoing.
The latest court decision does not mean the allegations against MTN have been proven. The company stressed that the rulings so far are procedural and do not amount to a finding that it is liable.
The Eastern District of New York rejected MTN’s applications to reconsider the earlier decision that allowed certain claims under the US Anti-Terrorism Act to continue. The court also declined to allow an immediate appeal of that decision.
MTN said the next phase will allow it to challenge the factual claims made against it using evidence obtained through the litigation process.
‘In the next phases of the litigation, MTN will, for the first time, have an opportunity to produce and solicit evidence to disprove plaintiffs’ allegations.’
Once discovery is completed, both sides will have the option of asking the court to decide the matter through summary judgment, which is based on the evidence gathered without proceeding to a full trial.
If no summary judgment application is made, or if such applications are unsuccessful, the litigation would continue.
MTN also pointed out that US procedure meant it could not fully challenge the factual allegations against it during the earlier motion-to-dismiss stage.
‘Under US law and procedures, MTN could not challenge the factual allegations made against the company at the motion-to-dismiss phase, and accordingly, there is no finding made on the matter.’
The latest development specifically concerns the Zobay and Long cases. MTN said there have been no material updates in the separate Cabrera and Chand & Davis cases, which are also being pursued under the US Anti-Terrorism Act.
The company said it remains committed to defending the proceedings and will continue considering its legal options.
MTN also expressed sympathy for those affected by the conflicts underlying the cases while maintaining that it believes the evidence will ultimately support its position.
‘MTN continues to believe that the evidence will demonstrate that MTN was not a culpable participant in the attacks at issue.’
The discovery process will now become the key battleground in the Zobay and Long matters as the parties begin gathering and exchanging evidence before the next major legal decisions are made.
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