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Geoff Morrell News

11 Mar 2016

BP Escapes US Lawsuits Over Post-Gulf Spill Drilling Ban

BP Plc does not have to face U.S. lawsuits by energy and drilling companies over losses they suffered from an offshore drilling ban imposed soon after the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill, a federal judge ruled. U.S. District Judge Carl Barbier in New Orleans agreed with BP that federal law absolved the British oil company from liability for the Obama administration's decision to halt drilling and impose a moratorium on permits for new wells. The decision issued late on Thursday removes one of BP's last legal overhangs from the April 20, 2010 blowout of its Macondo well and the sinking of the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig, a disaster that killed 11 workers. BP has incurred $55.5 billion of costs for the spill, according to a March 4 regulatory filing by the company.

08 Sep 2015

BP Wins One US Court Ruling, Loses Another Over 2010 Gulf Spill

U.S. Coast Guard photo

A U.S. appeals court said BP Plc, which in July reached a $18.7 billion settlement of federal, state and local claims over the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill, must face one of two proposed class-action lawsuits claiming that the oil company defrauded shareholders over the disaster. The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans said investors who bought BP's American depositary shares in a 33-day period soon after the spill may pursue group claims that BP initially "lowballed" the oil flow rate, and that the share price tumbled as the crisis' magnitude became known.

20 May 2015

Dolphin die-off Spurred by BP Oil Spill

Dolphins are seen swimming through the oil spilling from the Deepwater Horizon oil well at the height of the spill in 2010. (Credit:NOAA)

A record dolphin die-off in the northern Gulf of Mexico was caused by the largest oil spill in U.S. history, researchers said on Wednesday, citing a new study that found many of the dolphins died with rare lesions linked to petroleum exposure. Scientists said the study of dead dolphins tissue rounded out the research into a spike of dolphin deaths in the region affected by BP Plc's oil spill that was caused by the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil rig explosion. Millions of barrels of crude oil spewed into Gulf waters…

20 Feb 2015

BP Bid to Cut Gulf Spill fine Denied

A U.S. judge on Thursday rejected BP Plc's attempt to reduce the maximum civil fine it could face for its role in the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill, leaving it potentially liable to pay $13.7 billion under the federal Clean Water Act. U.S. District Judge Carl Barbier in New Orleans agreed with the federal government that the maximum civil penalty that BP could face is $4,300 per barrel spilled. BP had sought a $3,000 per barrel maximum, equal to a maximum $9.57 billion civil fine. Barbier has not decided how much BP should pay, and it is unclear when he will. Setting a fine is the last step in a civil trial overseen by Barbier to determine responsibility and penalties for the April 20, 2010 blowout of the Macondo oil well, which killed 11 workers and caused the largest U.S.

14 Nov 2014

Courts Upholds BP 'gross negligence' Gulf Spill Ruling

A U.S. The decision by U.S. District Judge Carl Barbier in New Orleans means BP could still face close to $18 billion of penalties for violating the federal Clean Water Act. It marks the latest setback in BP's effort to curb costs from the April 20, 2010, explosion of the Deepwater Horizon rig, which led to 11 deaths and the largest U.S. offshore oil spill. The trial is expected to resume in January. Barbier had on Sept. 4 ruled that BP committed gross negligence and was 67 percent at fault for the spill. The gross negligence finding roughly quadrupled the maximum civil penalty that BP could face under the Clean Water Act. BP later argued that this ruling relied on inadmissible testimony from an expert for Halliburton Co, which provided cementing work at the spill site.

24 Sep 2014

Judge Rejects BP Bid to Recoup Some Spill Payments

A U.S. judge has ruled that BP Plc cannot recoup what it says were inflated claims paid under a multi-billion dollar settlement program to compensate people hurt by the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill, NOLA.com reported on Wednesday. BP originally expected the payout program to cost $7.8 billion, but it has said the final bill, from the uncapped agreement that is handling thousands of claims, could be considerably higher. The oil major has filed numerous motions to challenge what it says are excessive fees charged by the program's administrator, generous payments made under disputed accounting rules, and phony claims. U.S. District Court Judge Carl Barbier in New Orleans has thrown out many of those complaints and turned the company down again on Wednesday.

20 May 2014

Appeals Court Not to Revisit BP Oil Spill Compensation Decision

A U.S. appeals court will not revisit a decision to reject BP Plc's bid to block businesses from recovering money over the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill, even if those businesses could not trace their economic losses to the disaster. The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in March voted 2-1 to authorize payments on so-called business economic loss claims, and said an injunction preventing payments should be lifted. BP asked the entire 5th Circuit to rehear the case. However, the 5th Circuit voted 8-5 to let the March ruling stand, according to a court filing made public on Monday. In a statement, BP spokesman Geoff Morrell said the company is disappointed in the decision, and is considering its options.

04 Mar 2014

US Appeals Court, Says BP Bound by Gulf Spill Accord

A divided U.S. appeals court has rejected BP Plc's bid to block businesses from recovering money over the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill, even if they could not trace their economic losses to the disaster. By a 2-1 vote, the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans late Monday upheld a Dec. 24 ruling by U.S. District Judge Carl Barbier in New Orleans, authorizing the payments on so-called business economic loss claims. It also said an injunction preventing payments should be lifted. The decision is a setback for BP's effort to limit payments under a multi-billion dollar settlement over the April 20, 2010, explosion of the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig and rupture of BP's Macondo oil well. That disaster killed 11 people and triggered the largest U.S. offshore oil spill.

27 Feb 2014

BP Loses Bid to Block Seafood Fund Payments

A U.S. federal judge on Wednesday denied BP Plc's request to halt payments from the $2.3 billion fund it created to compensate commercial fishermen for financial losses after the British company's 2010 offshore oil spill, according to court records. BP had sought to block the payments after alleging that some individuals supposedly injured by the spill, clients of attorney Mikal Watts, did not exist. The company said it has already paid out more than $1 billion from the so-called Seafood Compensation Fund. U.S. District Judge Carl Barbier in New Orleans, who is overseeing litigation stemming from the spill, denied the motion on Wednesday, according to an entry on the court docket.

31 Jul 2013

Deepwater Horizon Spill: Lawyers the Big Winners Says BP Exec.

Geoff Morrell, BP's Vice President and Head of US Communications, comments that the spill deal's big [compensation] winners shouldn't be plaintiffs' lawyers. AL.com Alabama News report his remarks as follows. "In recent weeks, plaintiffs' lawyers have published opinion pieces in Gulf Coast newspapers attacking BP for identifying grave problems with the administration of a settlement we reached with them last year. But it turns out that many of the "families and businesses" really being helped are the lawyers' own. We offer the following facts in response to the plaintiffs' lawyers' op-eds so readers of this publication can make an informed judgment about the settlement and whether it's working "exactly" as intended.

21 Nov 2008

American Officials Address Piracy

On Nov. 19, 2008, Pentagon Press Secretary Geoff Morrell today defended the military effort to deter piracy in the Gulf of Aden and called on commercial ships to do more against this scourge of the sea. The U.S. 5th Fleet forms the core of the American effort in the Maritime Security Patrol Area, but other nations are involved. “Any number of countries are out there now, patrolling and having a deterrent effect in a huge body of water,” Morrell said. The Gulf of Aden – where recent attacks have occurred – has about 1.1 million square miles of open water. More than 20 nations – under command of a Danish flag officer – are coordinating their efforts in the region. The increasing level of piracy is having an impact on commercial shipping.