Gulf Oil Rig Disaster

Gulf Oil Rig Disaster

Gulf Oil Rig Disaster

Injury attorneys are sometimes compared to the Knights of the Round Table, who fought for the weak and the underdogs. The explosion of a BP oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico last month looks to provide a worthy jousting match.

The catastrophe that apparently killed 11 workers and caused millions of gallons of oil to spill into U.S. coastal waters horrified the world. While responsibility for the tragedy remains a subject of debate, its impact is not. The ultimate costs have been estimated anywhere from $2 billion to $14 billion.

Who Has Been Affected by the BP Oil Disaster?

To date, some 100 lawsuits have been filed against BP plc, the owner of the well spewing the oil, and other companies. The plaintiff groups include:

Commercial fishermen

Shrimpers

Seafood processors

Charter fishing boats and other tourism-related businesses

Property owners

The families of the 11 workers presumed dead

Grounds for the suits include loss of livelihood and damage to property. The impact on wildlife and the environment cannot be stated at this point.

Where Will the Suits Be Heard?

Coastal waters of four states Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, and Mississippi have been affected by the oil spill so far. If it expands, more states may become involved.

BP has asked that all claims for environmental and economic damages be consolidated and heard by a Houston federal court, in a process known as multidistrict legislation, or MDL. Essentially, when a number of cases on essentially similar issues are filed in different areas of jurisdiction, MDL consolidates them in the pretrial process under one judge. Doing this hastens the fact-finding process. If the cases are not settled in pretrial, they can be remanded to the district where they were first filed.

The U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation will review BP's request at its July meeting, to be held in Boise, Idaho, a spokesman said.

Who Will Pay?

Under federal law, BP, as the lead project operator, is responsible for all clean-up costs. It has pledged to meet these, and to pay all legitimate claims. One question is how long it will take to do this. After the Exxon Valdez accident in 1989, it took almost 20 years to settle all claims.

Another consideration is the extent of liability: current law limits liability for losses to $75 million. A bill before Congress would raise that limit to $10 billion and would make it apply to this spill.

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