US House Removes Liability Caps In Wake Of Oil Spill

1st Jul 2010 21:34

By Tennille Tracy Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES WASHINGTON (Dow Jones)--The U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill Thursday that will make it easier for the families of victims of Deepwater Horizon to receive compensation. The bill changes two decades-old laws and then repeals a third law from 1851 that Transocean Ltd. (RIG) has tried to use to limit its liability in the oil spill. Transocean owned the Deepwater Horizon rig, which caught fire in April, killing 11 workers on the rig. The measure passed the House under a suspension of rules. Introduced by Rep. John Conyers, a Michigan Democrat who chairs the U.S. House Judiciary Committee, the bill changes the Death on High Seas Act and the Jones Act to permit non-pecuniary damages. The bill also repeals the Limitation on Liability Act, which says a vessel owner, such as Transocean, is only liable for the post-accident value of the vessel and cargo, as long as the owner can show no knowledge of negligence in the accident. If not amended or repealed, that act could allow Transocean to limit its liability for personal-injury, wrongful-death and other non-pollution related lawsuits stemming from the rig's explosion and collapse. In May, Transocean filed papers under this law to limit its liability to just under $27 million. A spokesman for Transocean was unavailable for comment. Rep. Conyers said the bill fixes "major legal gaps" so that "victims of this disaster can get fair treatment." "The unfairness of these laws is grossly apparent," Conyers said on the House floor. -By Tennille Tracy, Dow Jones Newswires; 202-862-6619; [email protected] (Brent Kendall contributed to this article.) (END) Dow Jones Newswires July 01, 2010 16:34 ET (20:34 GMT)