Questions Raised About Causation and Conflicts of Interest in BP Litigation

The Washington Post reports on "the legal gusher" facing BP in the federal courts in New Orleans.

One issue involves the April 2012 settlement over economic harm to people and businesses, and how much causation plaintiffs have to show to be entitled to be paid by the special master administering payouts from the BP fund, The Post reports. "BP alleges that many of the 256,478 claims filed--by a parade of fishermen, hotels, surf shops, law firms, nursing homes, strip clubs and others — are unjustified or even fraudulent," The Post further reports.

Another issue The Post highlights are possible conflicts of interest in which a lawyer, appointed as the appeals coordinator for disputed claims in the settlement fund, got the job because his father, a federal judge, helped arrange it with the special master overseeing the fund. The judge's sister-in-law got hired at an accounting firm advising restaurant owners and suppliers seeking money from the BP settlement. The judge's brother and nephew work at a law firm representing clients seeking money from the fund. The judge and his wife have filed a claim for payment by BP, even though the judge oversaw the trial of a BP engineer convicted of obstruction of justice.