【英语国际】美国多个州考虑向英国石油提起高额索赔

Gulf Coast states are gearing up to follow shrimpers and hotel owners in seeking payouts from BP PLC for lost revenue and other damages stemming from the Gulf of Mexico oil spill.

The demands could far exceed the $305 million BP has already given the states of Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida to help pay cleanup costs, promote tourism and begin building sand berms off the coast of Louisiana, state officials say. Lawyers advising the states said they would eventually seek multibillion dollar payouts, but it was still too early to give a tally.

BP declined to comment on the states' legal strategies. The British oil company agreed nearly two weeks ago to honor claims for damages and lost business revenue from individuals and businesses through a $20 billion, independent compensation fund administered by Kenneth Feinberg, the Washington, D.C.,-based lawyer and arbitration expert.

The fund is also meant to cover payments for states and localities to defray cleanup costs, but not necessarily claims for the larger economic damages that Florida and the other states plan to present directly to BP, the state's representatives said.

'We don't want to in any way diminish that fund,' said Steve Yerrid, an attorney picked by Florida Gov. Charlie Crist, a Republican, as a special counsel for the oil spill. Mr. Yerrid met Friday with Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum to discuss the state's strategy. 'We are looking at much more global and larger losses to the state, which would be covered separately,' he said.

Mr Yerrid is assembling a team of private attorneys to prepare for what he predicts will be 'a very large reparations request.' The other Gulf states have similar efforts underway -- and have held talks with each other -- although the legal strategies among them differ.

Florida intends to seek payments from BP to cover lost tax revenue, unemployed workers and other damages to the state's coastal economy, Mr. Yerrid said.

Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood has sought advice from state university researchers, economists and lawyers to assess the environmental and economic damage the spill has caused.

Mississippi has already received $25 million from BP to pay for costs from the spill and another $25 million for its local governments that are grappling with an array of economic issues brought on by the slick that has washed ashore.

Louisiana's attorney general's office has hired plaintiff attorney Brad Marten of Seattle, who represented Alaska in the Exxon Valdez oil-spill litigation. Mr. Marten did not return calls for comment.

Texas, which has not been hit by any oil from the spill, is nonetheless 'considering any and all possible legal avenues regarding the oil spill,' said Jerry Strickland, a spokesman for Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott.

墨西哥湾沿岸的美国各州正在仿效捕虾者和饭店拥有者的作法，寻求向英国石油（BP PLC）索赔，弥补因墨西哥湾漏油事件而失去的收入和其他损失。

有州立官员表示，这一要求可能远超过英国石油已支付给路易斯安那州、密西西比州、亚拉巴马州和佛罗里达州的3.05亿美元，英国石油向这些州支付这些资金是用于清理费用、促进旅游、开始建设路易斯安那州沿岸的沙质隔离带。这些州聘请的律师表示，他们最终寻求数十亿美元赔偿，但目前给出一个数据还太早。

Getty Images美国阿拉巴马州的一处海滩上，工人们正在更换吸油材料。墨西哥湾泄漏的原油垃圾已经到达了这里。英国石油拒绝就上述各州的法律策略发表评论，该公司近两周前同意，将通过一个高达200亿美元的独立赔偿基金来支付个人和企业的损失和失去的业务收入，该独立赔偿基金由华盛顿特区律师和仲裁专家范伯格（Kenneth Feinberg）监管。

该州代表表示，这一基金旨在涵盖各州和地方的清理费用，但不一定是佛罗里达和其他州计划直接向英国石油就较大经济损失提出的索赔。

佛罗里达州州长、共和党人克里斯特（Charlie Crist）挑选律师易瑞德（Steve Yerrid）担任该漏油事件的特别顾问。易瑞德称，我们不想减少这一基金的规模。易瑞德周五会见了佛罗里达州总检察长麦科勒姆（Bill McCollum），讨论该州的策略。他说，我们正在检查漏油事件在全球范围对该州的影响，和更大的损失情况，这将被分别赔偿。

易瑞德正在集合一批私人律师为他预测将成为“非常大规模的赔偿要求”作准备。墨西哥湾沿岸的其他州也在采取相似的措施，他们已互相讨论过，不过他们的法律策略有所不同。

易瑞德说，佛罗里达州希望英国石油支付资金弥补失去的税收、赔偿失业的工人和其他损失。

密西西比州总检察长胡德（Jim Hood）一直努力从州立大学研究员、经济学家和律师那里寻求建议，以评估漏油事件导致的环境和经济损失。

密西西比州已从英国石油获得2500万美元，以支付漏油而带来的费用，还有2500万美元支付给努力解决漏油事件带来的一连串经济问题的地方政府。

路易斯安那州总检查长办公室已聘请了西雅图原告律师马滕（Brad Marten），他在Exxon Valdez油轮漏油事件诉讼中代表阿拉斯加州出庭。马滕先生没有回复要求置评的电话。

得克萨斯州总检察长阿博特（Greg Abbott）的发言人斯特里克兰（Jerry Strickland）说，虽然得克萨斯州没有受到漏油事件所泄漏石油的污染，但正在考虑针对这起事件的所有可能的法律途径。