The Oil Spill
On March 24, 1989, the supertanker Exxon Valdez, under the command of Exxon Master Joseph Hazelwood, ran aground on Bligh Reef in Prince William Sound, Alaska, discharging millions of gallons of crude oil into the pristine ecosystem of the Sound, ruining the livelihood of thousands of families dependent on the fishing industry and subsistence fishing, and disrupting the orderly conduct of local and Tribal affairs. Captain Hazelwood admitted to drinking alcohol immediately before the grounding, in violation of Exxon policy and in violation of U.S. Coast Guard regulations. Keller Rohrback L.L.P. took a leading role in the effort to obtain fair compensation from Exxon (the vessel owner and operator) and Alyeska (the oil company consortium that owned the pipeline and its output).

From Alyeska, we obtained a $98 million settlement. The Court appointed Keller Rohrback L.L.P.'s Managing Partner, Lynn Lincoln Sarko, as Administrator for the Alyeska Qualified Settlement Fund. Mr. Sarko has developed and implemented a plan for distributing the Fund proceeds among the more than 10,000 claimants eligible to share in the settlement recovery.
For more information about the claims program, please contact us at 1-800-EX-SPILL (1-800-397-7455). Be sure to leave your full name, social security number, your phone number (including area code) and your mailing address.

The Trial
Plaintiffs also pursued recovery from Exxon and from Captain Hazelwood. After a three-month jury trial in Alaska federal court, plaintiffs proved hundreds of millions in damages to fishermen, and obtained a $5 billion punitive damages verdict against Exxon. This is the largest punitive damages verdict in U.S. history. Keller Rohrback L.L.P. partners Lynn Lincoln Sarko, Michael Woerner, and David Copley played critical roles during discovery, trial and appeal.

The Appeal
Exxon Valdez appeals ruling stuns Alaskans (By Yereth Rosen)
ANCHORAGE, Alaska, Nov 7 (Reuters) - Exxon Mobil Corp.'s reprieve on Wednesday from a $5 billion punitive fine stunned and angered Alaskans who had sued the energy giant for punitive damages from the 1989 Valdez oil spill disaster.
...

To see the entire press release, click below to download:
Exxon Press Release

For the ruling summary , click the link below:
9th Circuit Ruling Summary

For the full ruling content, click the link below:
Full 9th Circuit Ruling

For the full content of Judge Holland's December 6, 2002 ruling regarding punitive damages, click the link below to download an Adobe file:
Judge Holland's December 6, 2002 Punitive Ruling

For Judge Holland's 54(b) ruling, clink the link below to download an Adobe file:
Judge Holland's 54(b) Ruling

Oral Arguments Regarding Punitive Damages
On December 3rd, 2003 U.S. District Judge H. Russell Holland heard oral arguments regarding punitive damages from both Exxon and Plaintiffs' Counsel. For the transcript of the proceedings, click the link below to download an Adobe file:
Punitives Transcripts

For the full content of Judge Holland's January 24, 2004 ruling regarding punitive damages, click the link below to download an Adobe file:
Judge Holland's January 24, 2004 Punitive Ruling

January 27, 2006 Oral Arguments Regarding Punitive Damages
On January 27, 2006 Judges Schroeder, Browning and Klienfeld of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit heard oral arguments for the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill case with respect to the amount of punitive damages. An audio transcript of these arguments can be found by clicking here. We do not know when the Ninth Circuit will issue its ruling but will update this message as soon as it does.

Ninth Circuit Rules on Exxon Punitive Damage Amount

December 22, 2007 - The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit has ruled that Exxon Mobil Corp. must pay $2.5 billion in damages to victims of the Valdez oil spill. The appeals court reduced the $4.5 billion award for the 11-million gallon Exxon Valdez tanker spill, saying the verdict exceeded U.S. Supreme Court limits on punitive damages. The Appellate Court said Exxon's "reckless misconduct'" in the 1989 accident still warranted severe sanctions. Exxon had argued that it should pay no more than $25 million in punitive damages in the case. The case is titled Baker v. Exxon Mobil Corp., 04-35182, 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals (San Francisco).

See Attached opinion

May 23, 2007 - Denial of petition for rehearing en banc

On May 23, the Ninth Circuit decided that it would not rehear our case "en banc". That is a majority of the judges on the Ninth Circuit do not disagree with or believe the panel's decision was incorrect and should be implemented. This means that at long last we are done with Ninth Circuit review. A welcome development after ten years of proceedings.

Exxon has 90 days from that date to file their next move called a petition for certiorari to the United States Supreme Court. Exxon may ask for an extension of that period for a month or two, a position which we will oppose, but which may be allowed anyway. After Exxon's petition is filed, we are allowed 30 days to respond and will do so, both opposing Exxon's petition, and filing our own cross-petition if we should choose to do so. There are then opportunities for Exxon to respond to our position, and for us to respond as well. The Supreme Court is not required to hear the case, that is "grant the petition for certiorari". The earliest that we expect the Supreme Court to decide whether to take the case or not is very late this year, but it is more likely early next year. In the event the Supreme Court does take the case, it would probably not issue a decision until 2008 or 2009. In the event it does not take the case, it would be sent back to Judge Holland to enforce the judgment shortly after that decision.

Supreme Court Response Brief - 9/20/2007

The Supplemental Claims Program
The Supplemental Claims program will disburse approximately $25 million in settlement funds and serve as a basis for eventually distributing amounts recovered in connection with the $5 billion punitive damages verdict reached in the 1994 federal court trial. The Plans of Distribution for the fifty-one (51) claim categories have been approved by Judge H. Russel Holland, U.S. District Court Judge in Anchorage, Alaska. The claims programs are in various stages. The bar-date for Round One, which included Oiled Salmon and Native Subsistence, was June 30, 1999. All claims must have been postmarked by that date in order to be considered timely. Round Two is currently in progress. The claim forms for the following Round Two claim categories must be completed and postmarked by November 30, 1999: Oiled Herring, Area Business, Aquaculture, Cannery Worker, Municipality, Native Corporation, Personal Injury, Personal Property, Real Property, Subsistence, and Tender. Claim forms for the remaining twenty-one claim categories will be sent at a later date.

For More Information
For more information, please call our Exxon toll-free information line at 1-800-EX-SPILL (800-397-7455).