According to Fuel Fix, BP said last Wednesday that it will take the courtroom fight over the settlement agreement it previously reached with plaintiffs to the United States Supreme Court. The company has argued that the settlement agreement reached with plaintiffs’ attorneys in 2012 is being misinterpreted and BP is being forced to pay meritless claims. The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Monday denied BP’s request for a rehearing before the entire court. BP said Wednesday it will ask the appeals court to not issue a mandate on the matter until the Supreme Court reaches its own judgment. The move would keep billions in liabilities in limbo as it holds in place a court mandate to stay business economic-loss claims. The company said the appeals court’s ruling would redefine the settlement’s requirements for oil spill claimants and draw more companies to enter the class-action settlement or sue the company “in protracted litigation that would delay compensation for true victims.” “No company would agree to pay for losses that it did not cause, and BP certainly did not when it entered into this settlement,” the company said in a written statement. “BP will continue to fight to return the settlement to its original, explicit, and lawful purpose – the compensation of claimants who suffered actual losses due to the spill.”
If you or someone you know have suffered injury or property damage as a result of the BP oil spill, contact an attorney at Abraham, Watkins, Nichols, Agosto, Aziz & Stogner by calling (713) 222-7211 or 713-222-7211.