Disasters, etc.
Biggest Exxon payout set to go
(Naomi Klouda/Homer Tribune, 18 November 2009) -- In the next few weeks, fishermen harmed by the 1989 Exxon Valdez Oil Spill should start receiving their biggest settlement payout yet. Lawyers representing the plaintiffs have worked since December through a cumbersome process to distribute $383 million in punitive damages. Now the lawyers are preparing to distribute an even bigger sum — $470 million — in the next several weeks. The money is interest Exxon Mobil Corp. paid July 1 on the punitive damages award the U.S. Supreme Court ordered last year. “The $470 million that we hoped for in September was delayed because Judge (Russel) Holland had a number of different questions about the payout structure and the computation of interest,” said Frank Mullen, one of the plaintiffs and a local investment planner in Homer. “The money is not flowing yet, but in the next few weeks, the results of that $470 million distribution will begin to appear for fishermen on the clean claims list.” Cities and entities other than individuals should also receive payments, including the city of Homer and payments toward its $1.05 million portion. The “clean claims” list includes those who have no liens or attachments. Mullen said the thousands of fishermen who died in the 20-year wait for legal resolutions to receive their payout would not be on the clean claims list either. He added that the money has trickled out since last Christmas, and if plaintiffs were disappointed in the smaller-than-hoped-for sums in the first distribution, they might be happier with the second one. “The settlement money is all going to eventually appear in fishermen’s accounts, but at different times,” Mullen explained. “This will be the largest payment. That’s the way this litigation has worked.”
Posted 18 November 2009; 10:36:37 AM. Permalink
Tagged: Alaska, Circumpolar News, Contaminants and Pollution, Economic and Commerce Issues, Natural disasters and other problems, North America, November09, Transportation, Infrastructure and Construction, United States
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