Oil Spill Catastrophe
Oil Spill CatastropheOn April 20, 2010, a blowout, two explosions, and a fire on the mobile offshore drilling unit DEEPWATER HORIZON occurred as the vessel was preparing to temporarily abandon the Macondo well, an exploratory well drilled in Block 252, Mississippi Canyon, on the Outer Continental Shelf, approximately 50 miles south of Louisiana. The catastrophe took the lives of eleven men and injured many others. On April 22, after burning for two days, the rig sank into the Gulf of Mexico. For the next 87 days, oil continuously discharged into the Gulf before the well could be capped on July 15, 2010. Our firm was trusted with a leadership role in this historic fight to hold BP accountable for its gross negligence, which claimed eleven lives and devastated countless others. HKGC partner Soren Gisleson helped guide the litigation from the beginning, taking on critical responsibilities that shaped the outcome—ranging from depositions and expert preparation to drafting key pleadings and advancing settlement efforts. Shortly before the February 27, 2012 trial, an agreement was announced between the Plaintiffs and BP. Ultimately, two formal proposed Class Action Settlements were filed and preliminarily approved. Claimants brought their claims to the Court-Supervised Settlement Program for resolution. The Economic and Medical Settlements resolved certain economic losses, property damage, and medical claims related to the BP Oil Spill and rig explosion:
- Seafood Compensation
- Loss of Subsistence
- VoO Charter Payment
- Vessel Physical Damage
- Business Economic Loss
- Wetlands Real Property Damage
- Coastal Real Property Damage
- Real Property Sales Loss
- Individual Economic Loss
- Medical Illness or Injury
Our firm was instrumental in negotiating the uncapped, multi-billion-dollar settlement with BP. The settlement ended up being so favorable to victims of the spill that BP actually took the unprecedented step of appealing the terms of a settlement that it actually agreed to in writing. We also handle other litigation matters involving personal injuries and the environment, such as toxic contamination, offshore accidents, electrical injury cases, hurricanes and natural disasters, and more.
Other BP Oil Spill News
New Orleans, LA Oil Spill Settlement Lawyers The Economic & Property Damages Class Settlement was approved by the District Court on December 21, 2012 and affirmed by the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals on [...]
This article attempts to shed light on some of the questions regarding the original 2010 BP tragedy, the 2012 settlement agreement, and why BP changed its mind.
New Orleans, LA BP Settlement Program Policy In interpreting and applying the BP Economic & Property Damages Class Settlement, the Claims Administrator has issued a number of Policies to guide the Program Vendors, and Claimants, [...]
