Cleanup Workers Ask Judge to Reconsider BP Oil Spill Settlement

Last week, several groups of cleanup workers in the BP oil spill class action lawsuit requested U.S. District Judge Carl Barbier allow them to collect settlement payments for medical problems caused by exposure to cleanup chemicals that were not diagnosed until after the settlement date of April 16, 2012.

In July, Judge Barbier had ruled that any condition diagnosed after April 16, 2012 was a “Later-Manifested Condition” under the terms of the class action settlement even if signs or symptoms were present before that date. Under the terms of the BP oil spill settlement, “Specified Physical Condition” payments are for Class Members who suffered injuries within 24, 48 or 72 hours of exposure to the oil and cleanup chemicals, including Corexit, a chemical used to dissolve surface oil.

In February, the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals dismissed BP’s final appeals of the $130 million medical benefits settlement with a Class of workers involved with the cleanup of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill and it appeared that payments would go forward. However, last week, the cleanup workers requested Judge Barbier reconsider his July ruling, arguing that more than 12,000 BP oil spill settlement Class Members could be faced with “back-end litigation,” or litigation against British Petroleum Inc. after the original settlement is paid out years from now, as a result of the decision.

The cleanup workers argue that the terms of the “Later-Manifested Physical Condition” payment should be interpreted by the court to cover illnesses that manifest much later, like skin and respiratory illnesses, and cancers for example. The cleanup workers also point out in their request for reconsideration that they could not afford to go to a doctor within the time-frame specified in the class action settlement and did not know they needed to be diagnosed by a doctor to make a claim. The cleanup worker plaintiffs argue they should be entitled to the $60,700 settlement payments for Specified Physical Conditions.

If the ruling stands, BP will save approximately $1.2 billion under the Deepwater Horizon oil spill settlement. BP argued in response that because conditions diagnosed after the date of the class action settlement, April 16, 2012, are defined as “Later-Manifested Physical Conditions,” plaintiffs whose medical conditions related to exposure to chemicals where not diagnosed until after that date should be addressed in back-end litigation according to the terms of the settlement.

The Deepwater Horizon oil spill class action lawsuit was settled approximately two years after BP’s Deepwater Horizon oil rig blew and poured 4.1 million barrels of oil into the Gulf coast area in April 2010. The oil spill continued for 87 days. Eleven oil rig workers died in the explosion and oil and cleanup chemicals dispersed throughout the area affecting multiple states.

The plaintiffs are represented by Stephen J. Herman of Herman Herman & Katz LLC and James Parkerson Roy of Domengeaux Wright Roy & Edwards.

The Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Class Action Lawsuit is In re: Deepwater Horizon, Case No. 13-30221, in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.

The Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill MDL is In re: Oil Spill by the Oil Rig “Deepwater Horizon” in the Gulf of Mexico on April 20, 2010, Case No. 2:10-md-02179, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana.