The suit, brought up by Nigerian Larry Bowoto and an indigenous rights group known as the "Concerned Ilaje Citizens" and 10 years in the making, failed to find Chevron responsible for the deaths of two persons during demonstrations in 1998 at an offshore oil platform in protest against the company's economic and environmental impact on the region.

"We are gratified by the decision of the jurors in this case, who listened to weeks of testimony, weighed all the evidence presented, and arrived at a just and fair verdict," said the company in a statement released following the verdict's announcement in a San Francisco federal court earlier this week.

Despite their loss, lawyers for the plaintiffs called the trial a "victory" that could prompt Chevron to act in a "reasonable, non-violent way" in settling future disputes in the delta.

"Although the plaintiffs did not prevail today, Chevron now knows that it cannot conceal complicity in human rights abuses from public scrutiny," said Richard Herz, a lawyer for the plaintiffs.

"The fact that this case went to trial at all is a victory for human rights, and a tribute to the courage and persistence of these plaintiffs. We are hopeful that the legacy of this important case is that Chevron will change its behavior in the places where it operates."

The case was tried in the United States under the infrequently used Alien Tort Claims Act. Dating back to 1789, the act provides that foreigners can sue a U.S. company or other American entity in a U.S. court for human-rights violations committed in a foreign country.

Laura Livoti, founder of Justice in Nigeria Now, said that despite the verdict, the case proved a point.

"The fact that Bowoto vs. Chevron made it this far in the process is a victory in and of itself, because it means that we have demonstrated that there is a clear pathway in the U.S. court system for holding corporations accountable to the rule of law," said Livoti.

"This is the first time a case against a company for aiding and abetting human rights violations overseas has even gone before a jury."

While Nigerian activists proclaimed moral victory and legal precedent for bringing their complaint to a U.S. court, Chevron maintains its actions during the demonstration were within its legal rights.

During testimony, Chevron attorneys countered that it was the company's right to protect its employees and call on local authorities, as the protesters had taken several employees hostage. Lawyers for the plaintiffs and protest leaders countered that the demonstration on the oil platform was peaceful and that Nigerian troops used excessive force in killing two protesters. The oil company said it neither gave the order to use excessive force to the Nigerian soldiers, nor was it capable of commanding Nigerian forces.

Chevron operations in Nigeria have been at the center of other controversies over the years, including several attacks on its operations in the delta.

Earlier this year the company declared a force majeure on its oil exports following a particularly destructive attack on one of its installations in the delta by Nigerian militants. Though Chevron claimed at the time that production was not stymied by the attack, Nigerian energy officials estimated the assault cost the U.S. company about 100,000 barrels a day in production.

Attacks on oil installations in the delta have severely hampered production over the last few years, reducing output once estimated at 2.5 million bpd by more than 20 percent.

Nigeria's decline in oil production has been blamed predominantly on militant groups like the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta. The delta is home to the vast majority of Nigeria's oil production; however, its residents remain mired in abject poverty.

The country that once dominated oil production in Africa has pumped more than $300 billion worth of crude over the last three decades from the southern delta states, according to estimates.

Nigeria's high unemployment in the delta, environmental degradation due to oil and gas extraction, and a lack of basic resources such as fresh water and electricity have angered the region's youth, who have taken up arms, many times supplied by political leaders, and formed militant groups and local gangs.

Grievances with U.S. and other foreign oil companies operating in the delta, including Chevron, also have given rise to labor strife, said Rolake Akinola, a senior analyst for West Africa at the London-based consulting firm Control Risks.

Earlier this year Nigeria's largest petroleum workers' union called for the removal of Chevron's managing director, citing allegedly unsafe work conditions and other grievances against the third-largest energy firm in the West African country.

"These kind of strike threats are a sort of trend (in the Niger Delta)," Akinola told United Press International. "That's the cycle we've seen in the oil industry."

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