bp oil spill trial

As the second phase of the BP civil trial got underway, activists launched a petition calling on the company to fire chief executive Bob Dudley, saying his request to suspend payment of claims related to the Gulf oil disaster is an effort to avoid honoring obligations to the region.

BP is scrambling to save the company's image from the realities of the ongoing Gulf disaster, but it can't hide the truth.

The company is seeking to reduce its civil liabilities under the Clean Water Act by excluding the oil it salvaged from the total amount spilled in the 2010 Deepwater Horizon disaster. Meanwhile, the court has approved a settlement for medical claims related to the spilled oil and dispersants used to break up the slick.

Most of the $1.4 billion in fines and penalties that Transocean has agreed to pay for its negligence in the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster will be sent to the Gulf Coast region to fund environmental restoration work.

The Department of Justice has filed a memorandum with the judge in the BP lawsuit blasting the company for making misleading claims about its responsibility and the ongoing damage it's caused to the environment. BP is also facing fire for misleading claims from Alabama and from institutional investors.

However, Gulf residents who experienced health problems in the spill's wake remain distrustful that they will be fairly compensated for their pain and suffering.

A judge has decided that BP's history of safety problems won't be admissible in the upcoming trial for its Gulf oil spill. While that may be legally justifiable, it's a shame that BP's disaster gets the privilege of being viewed in isolation.