Two new settlements, totaling nearly $1.24 billion have been reached with Halliburton Energy Services, Inc. and Halliburton Company (“HESI”) and Triton Asset Leasing GmbH, Transocean Deepwater Inc., Transocean Offshore Deepwater Drilling Inc., and Transocean Holdings LLC (“Transocean”) over the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.
The HESI/Transocean Settlements will not pay for any economic loss or personal injury claims. They cover punitive damages as well as certain assigned claims from the 2012 BP Deepwater Horizon Economic & Property Damages Settlement (“DHEPDS”). Generally, claims for punitive damages are not intended to compensate people for their losses, but rather seek a monetary award that is used to discourage a defendant and others from committing similar acts in the future.
There are two groups included in the Settlements:
New Class: $902 million to compensate class members whose real or personal property was physically oiled as well as commercial fishermen. The New Class is intended to address only those claims that could have been brought for punitive damages under general maritime law. This includes previously excluded groups (local government, gaming, finance, insurance, real estate development, defense industries, and oil and gas entities), individuals and entities that opted out of the DHEPDS, and groups that were part of certain DHEPDS claims categories (coastal, wetlands, vessel physical damage, seafood, charterboat, real property sales loss, and subsistence). These are the only claims that will be addressed by these Settlements.
Old Class: $337 million to compensate the existing DHEPDS Class for Assigned Claims associated with the 2012 DHEPDS Agreement. This Class consists of hundreds of thousands of businesses and individuals who previously filed claims for economic losses associated with the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. Only individuals and businesses that previously filed a valid DHEPDS claim will be eligible for a payment from the HESI/Transocean Settlements associated with the assigned claims.
Class Members only need to file a claim if they are New Class Members and were not eligible to file a claim in the DHEPDS or elected to opt out of that settlement. Deadline to submit a claim is December 15, 2016.
New Class Members who do not want to be legally bound by the Settlements must exclude themselves bySeptember 23, 2016, or they won’t be able to sue HESI or Transocean later about the claims in this case. New and Old Class Members may object to the Settlements by September 23, 2016.
The Court will hold a hearing on November 10, 2016, to consider whether to approve the Settlements and a request for attorneys’ fees up to $124,950,000 to be paid separately by HESI/Transocean. The Court has appointed Herman Herman & Katz and Domengeaux Wright Roy Edwards & Colomb to represent the New Class Members.
