Attorneys take legal action against BP and others involved in Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster
May 8th, 2010 - 1:25 am ICT by BNO NewsTALLAHASSEE, FLORIDA (BNO NEWS) – A team of nationally known attorneys filed an amended complaint in one of the first Florida class action lawsuits over the sinking of the oil rig Deepwater Horizon in the Gulf of Mexico, Howard & Associates, P.A. said Friday.
With the BP oil spill generating worldwide environmental concern and its increasing threats to Florida’s fishing, maritime and tourism industries, Gulf Actions Spill Counsel (GASP), a team of attorneys, which is being led by Tallahassee lawyer and Northeastern University Professor P. Tim Howard, filed an amended complaint in the U.S. District Court in Tallahassee last Friday.
The complaint alleges gross negligence, willful misconduct and other claims in the design, construction and operation of the rig, as well as in the response to the disaster.
“Oil continues to flow into the gulf, and with it an environmental nightmare,” Howard said, who most recently played a leading role in coordinating a national team of more than 40 law firms in the Toyota sudden acceleration lawsuits. “This unmitigated horror threatens to destroy one of the most beautiful marine, coastal and estuarine environments in the world.”
Considered as one of the world’s most beautiful beaches by several media sources, Panama City Beach, and its surrounding coastlines, are among those expected to be directly impacted by the oil slick as it moves onshore.
Among the plaintiffs are George Weems Ward, who lives in East Point, Florida, on Apalachicola Bay near Panama City. Mr. Ward earns his living as a guide fisherman, shrimper, and oysterman. He is joined by plaintiff Jeff Galloway, who lives on nearby St. George Island, where he works as a real estate broker. A third lead plaintiff in the class action is Constance Ward (no relation to Mr. Ward), who owns property in Cape San Blas, Florida, also just south of Panama City.
The offenders include various divisions of oil giant BP (formerly British Petroleum), Transocean, Ltd. (the owners/operators of the Deepwater Horizon), Halliburton Energy (which was involved in “cementing” operations to cap the oil rig when the explosion occurred) and Cameron International Corporation (manufacturers of the rig’s blow-out-preventers, which failed to operate properly and prevent the oil spill).
Similar lawsuits are planned for Texas, Alabama and Mississippi.
- US allows BP to drill new Gulf deepwater wells - Oct 22, 2011
- BP to pay $7.8 bn to victims of oil spill - Mar 05, 2012
- US blames BP's poor decisions for Gulf oil spill - Sep 15, 2011
- BP seeks to resume drilling in Gulf of Mexico - Apr 04, 2011
- BP sues Cameron, Deepwater Horizon owner Transocean over Gulf of Mexico oil spill - Apr 21, 2011
- Investigation report blames failure of 'blowout preventer' for Gulf of Mexico oil spill - Mar 24, 2011
- BP lacked basic safety in North Sea: Probe - Sep 15, 2010
- Florida establishes the Gulf Oil Spill Economic Recovery Task Force - May 11, 2010
- Transocean gives bonuses for 'safety' after Gulf of Mexico oil spill - Apr 04, 2011
- US terms reports of BP resuming Gulf of Mexico drilling as 'misconception' - Apr 05, 2011
- BP Has Not Bequeathed Accurate Data - May 21, 2010
- Investigation begins into Gulf of Mexico oil spill - May 11, 2010
- "Poor safety culture" onboard Deepwater Horizon led to last year's massive Gulf oil spill - Apr 23, 2011
- Alabama Transports BP And Other Entities To Court Over The Oil Seepage In The Gulf Of Mexico - Aug 16, 2010
- US to lease out Gulf of Mexico chunk for oil drilling - Jan 27, 2012
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