Draft US Legislation Would Restrict Loopholes For BP -Report

23rd Jun 2010 02:07

DOW JONES NEWSWIRES BP's (BP, BP.LN) American assets could be seized by the courts if it tries to use loopholes in British or international law to escape liability for the Gulf of Mexico spill, under legislation being drafted by members of Congress, U.K. newspaper The Times reports on Wednesday. American politicians were moving to close off BP's legal options as continuing uncertainty over the oil giant's liabilities triggered a fresh slide in its shares to their lowest level in 13 years, The Times said. Lynn Lophucki, one of America's leading experts on bankruptcy law, said that the bill being drafted in the House of Representatives would compel BP to use American courts if it wanted to file for bankruptcy for any of its subsidiary companies--an outcome that he regarded as increasingly inevitable, The Times said. Newspaper Web site: http://thetimes.co.uk -Dow Jones Newswires; [email protected] (END) Dow Jones Newswires June 22, 2010 21:07 ET (01:07 GMT)