With the parameters set by administrator Kenneth Feinberg, for the most part, concerning the BP (NYSE:BP) compensation fund, he and the fund are already under fire just one day into the process.
The only uncertainty now is whether or not those receiving claims will be able to sue companies other than BP, who are exempt, with the acceptance of final claims, from further lawsuits.
Those receiving full payouts must waive their right to sue BP in the future if they accept them.
Most of the criticism is coming from the most affected state governments who say Feinberg didn't include them in the decision-making process when he was developing the rules for the fund.
The truth is the fund is there for people who want and need help now, and have the opportunity bypass the lengthy and expensive legal process, where nothing is guaranteed, and they would also have to pay legal fees of up to 30 percent of their award.
People and businesses would get the money rather than lawyers. What's not to like about that?
1 comment:
What's not to like about it is the discrepancy between Feinberg saying the fund will be at least as generous as the courts, while simultaneously denying en masse all subsistence use and property value claims, one of which is covered in the OPA and the other of which is covered by most state laws. He should've called it the "oil disaster unemployment fund" since lost income (and even that is skewed to benefit the profiteers as the local commercial fishermen will get their summer BP wages deducted from their claims while the out-of-area boat operators will have their extra summer income as total profit) is all they're compensating. All I really want is a little honesty from somebody, and saying the "only uncertainty now" is whether I can sue other companies later is just as dishonest as Feinberg's claims that he will help us all avoid a decade of legal morass.
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