- Jun 6, 2007
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It is shocking and appalling to hear the latest conditions for victims of the BP Gulf oil well leak to get help from the $20 billion dollar escrow account fund set-up for these victims. The latest publicly released conditions are that victims after they get their first six months of reimbursement would be eligible for only two and a half years of further reimbursement for their losses but to get this second reimbursement of two and a half years these victims have to sign a full release for BP with respect to any type of lawsuit against BP rising out of this Deepwater Horizon Rig explosion and the ensuing oil leak. Which means that if the leaked oil that has hit the Gulf coast by its static presence or being kicked up by a hurricane in that hurricane prone region contaminates shrimp, oysters or other fish in certain Gulf regions rendering the fish inedible four, six or a greater number of years from now, the fisherman for those wrecked fishing regions are shafted they can't sue BP to make them whole for their losses if they accepted the two and a half year deal from the twenty billion dollar fund. If a Gulf fisherman out of work because of the BP oil leak took a job laying boom to protect the Gulf coast from the leaked oil and make money to support the fisherman's family accepts the two and a half year deal and after signing the required release gets sick from exposure to the the toxic leaked oil and is so sick he or she can't support him or herself and the fisherman's family this release condition causes the fisherman to be shafted, that is, can't sue BP for compensation for this health harm.
Many of us Americans knew when the White House started talking about this twenty billion dollar escrow fund this was a dangerous idea because it could be used to subvert the tried and true civil justice system that has a long history of fairly vindicating victims rights, and apparently our fears are being born out! Part of the really grating thing about this latest twist is that when the President announced this $20 billion fund deal and was taking bows and praise over its creation he and his staff and BP officials lead everyone to believe this fund program would not affect victims right to sue BP in civil court, clearly this waiver development shows the American public wasn't being told the whole truth. Frankly, what is also surprising is that Mr. Feinberg - the person that did an outstanding job running the 9/11 victim compensation fund - would be a party to this hood winking plan against Gulf victims; Mr. Feinberg appears on TV news program selling himself as the Gulf victims champion promising Gulf state Governors he is going to be fair to their citizens - he is failing in both these respects if he goes along with this waiver plan (if Mr. Feinberg wants his deeds to match his talk he should be on the phone to President Obama threatening to resign if BP doesn't drop this waiver requirement)!
If this twenty billion Gulf victims fund is going to be run right and well for the victims and BP this is what should happen. Keep in mind the purpose of the Fund, the purpose of the fund is that individuals and businesses were really economically hurt by the oil leak and America couldn't wait for the machinery of the civil justice system to turn to get these victims the money they deserved and desperately need, this fund program isn't supposed to supplant the civil justice system. Victims should get reimbursements from the fund in up to six months blocks and if they sue BP the monies paid from the fund are an offset against the judgment levied in the lawsuit. This is a critically critically important condition that should be part of the fund program which is that accepting any monies from the fund should not in any way shape or form involve or bring about these recipients waiving any of their litigation rights against BP and the converse is true BP's involvement in the fund does not connote an acknowledgment of negligence on BP's part and/or the amount of economic harm a victim suffered from the oil leak. The perspective the people running the fund should have is that if the well is permanently plugged in August and an outstanding effort is made to clean up the oil that has leaked come next year the fishing industry in the Gulf could be ninety percent back to normal there may be regions around New Orleans as a precaution authorities want to continue to ban fishing from so that next year the number of fishing victims receiving help from the fund may be much smaller. As time goes by BP, the Whitehouse and Mr. Feinberg's team need to work out what group of injured parties this fund will be providing compensation to - over time the size of this group will obviously shrink. The position of the fund should be that for many people who believe their incurring or have incurred harm from the BP oil leak they are advised to talk with a lawyer about bringing a tortuous lawsuit against BP, authorities shouldn't be scrapping America's civil justice system. Again, the Funds purpose and goal shouldn't be to supplant the civil justice system. Letting the civil justice system be the civil justice system provides one critically important protection for Gulf residents, it allows good lawyering to protect Gulf citizens rights. Specifically what is meant is that if a gulf resident suffered economic harm from the Gulf leak a good lawyer will file a complaint based on the economic harm known of and suffered and assuming plaintiff prevails or there is a settlement good lawyering will protect that Gulf resident rights where if later on a new harm results from the Gulf leak befalls that resident the resident will not be precluded from bringing a lawsuit and having their rights vindicated, this protection is critically important!
Many of us Americans knew when the White House started talking about this twenty billion dollar escrow fund this was a dangerous idea because it could be used to subvert the tried and true civil justice system that has a long history of fairly vindicating victims rights, and apparently our fears are being born out! Part of the really grating thing about this latest twist is that when the President announced this $20 billion fund deal and was taking bows and praise over its creation he and his staff and BP officials lead everyone to believe this fund program would not affect victims right to sue BP in civil court, clearly this waiver development shows the American public wasn't being told the whole truth. Frankly, what is also surprising is that Mr. Feinberg - the person that did an outstanding job running the 9/11 victim compensation fund - would be a party to this hood winking plan against Gulf victims; Mr. Feinberg appears on TV news program selling himself as the Gulf victims champion promising Gulf state Governors he is going to be fair to their citizens - he is failing in both these respects if he goes along with this waiver plan (if Mr. Feinberg wants his deeds to match his talk he should be on the phone to President Obama threatening to resign if BP doesn't drop this waiver requirement)!
If this twenty billion Gulf victims fund is going to be run right and well for the victims and BP this is what should happen. Keep in mind the purpose of the Fund, the purpose of the fund is that individuals and businesses were really economically hurt by the oil leak and America couldn't wait for the machinery of the civil justice system to turn to get these victims the money they deserved and desperately need, this fund program isn't supposed to supplant the civil justice system. Victims should get reimbursements from the fund in up to six months blocks and if they sue BP the monies paid from the fund are an offset against the judgment levied in the lawsuit. This is a critically critically important condition that should be part of the fund program which is that accepting any monies from the fund should not in any way shape or form involve or bring about these recipients waiving any of their litigation rights against BP and the converse is true BP's involvement in the fund does not connote an acknowledgment of negligence on BP's part and/or the amount of economic harm a victim suffered from the oil leak. The perspective the people running the fund should have is that if the well is permanently plugged in August and an outstanding effort is made to clean up the oil that has leaked come next year the fishing industry in the Gulf could be ninety percent back to normal there may be regions around New Orleans as a precaution authorities want to continue to ban fishing from so that next year the number of fishing victims receiving help from the fund may be much smaller. As time goes by BP, the Whitehouse and Mr. Feinberg's team need to work out what group of injured parties this fund will be providing compensation to - over time the size of this group will obviously shrink. The position of the fund should be that for many people who believe their incurring or have incurred harm from the BP oil leak they are advised to talk with a lawyer about bringing a tortuous lawsuit against BP, authorities shouldn't be scrapping America's civil justice system. Again, the Funds purpose and goal shouldn't be to supplant the civil justice system. Letting the civil justice system be the civil justice system provides one critically important protection for Gulf residents, it allows good lawyering to protect Gulf citizens rights. Specifically what is meant is that if a gulf resident suffered economic harm from the Gulf leak a good lawyer will file a complaint based on the economic harm known of and suffered and assuming plaintiff prevails or there is a settlement good lawyering will protect that Gulf resident rights where if later on a new harm results from the Gulf leak befalls that resident the resident will not be precluded from bringing a lawsuit and having their rights vindicated, this protection is critically important!
