Oil Spill News

Senate Committee Votes to End Oil Spill Liability Cap Retroactively

A U.S. Senate committee Wednesday voted to eliminate limits on liability that oil companies would face for damages stemming from offshore spills like the one in the Gulf of Mexico. The change, if approved and made law, would apply retroactively …

Hurricane Alex to Hamper BP’s Gulf Oil Disaster Containment Effort

Tropical Storm Alex is expected to reach hurricane strength on Tuesday, with high winds and vast waves set to hamper BP Plc’s latest efforts to contain the largest oil spill in U.S. history. Shares in London-based energy giant BP fell …

For Gulf Oil Disaster Victims, Claims Processing May Be Improving

The first time Louisiana shrimp boat captain Louis Buteaux filed a claim with BP Plc to recoup oil spill losses, he was told he didn’t have enough paperwork to prove he actually was the skipper. So he only got $2,500 …

State, Maritime Law to Determine BP Oil Claims, Says Feinberg

Victims of the biggest oil spill in U.S. history should be compensated if their claims would be applicable under state or maritime law, the head of the $20 billion BP spill compensation fund told the Financial Times. In an interview …

California Launches Disaster Corps

California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has launched the first-in-the-nation Disaster Corps to professionalize, standardize and coordinate trained disaster volunteers statewide. Disaster Corps volunteers will be registered by their local government organization under the Disaster Service Worker Volunteer Program and will meet …

TS Alex -Season’s 1st Named Storm- Strengthens over Gulf of Mexico

Alex, the hurricane season’s first named tropical storm, reached that level on Friday, but weakened as it moved across the coast of Belize and El Salvador and over Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula. Two people were reported to have been swept away …

Top New Orleans Chef Sues BP Over Seafood Losses

Susan Spicer, one of New Orleans’ most prominent and highly regarded chefs, has sued BP Plc for damages to restaurants that have lost normal seafood supplies because of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill. Spicer, who runs the restaurant Bayona …

NHC Sees 60% Chance Caribbean System Could become Tropical Cyclone

The National Hurricane Center in Miami continues to track a low pressure system, which developed earlier this week [See IJ web site – https://www.insurancejournal.com/news/international/2010/06/14/110696.htm ]. The NHC’s latest bulletin places the system as “centered about 150 miles east-northeast of Cabo …

A Look at the More Than 240 Lawsuits Against BP in U.S.

BP Plc faces at least 243 U.S. lawsuits so far arising from its role in the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, in what is considered by some the biggest environmental disaster in U.S. history. The vast majority of the lawsuits …

Attorney Contingency Fee Bill Dies in Final Hours of Louisiana Session

As time ran out on the Louisiana legislative session, lawmakers were unable to complete a deal on a Senate Bill 731, which would have allowed the attorney general to hire outside attorneys on a contingency fee basis, according to the …