BP chief ordered to testify on Texas blast

BP chief ordered to testify on Texas blast
By FT reporters in New York and agencies
Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2006
Published: August 28 2006 20:28 | Last updated: August 28 2006 20:28


Lord Browne, chief executive of BP, has been ordered to submit to questioning by a US lawyer representing the victims and families affected by last year’s fatal explosion at the company’s Texas City refinery.

Judge Susan Criss, a state court judge in Galveston, ruled that Browne and John Manzoni, chief executive of its refining and marketing operations, must give depositions in the case - answering questions from the plaintiffs’ lawyers under oath that can then be used as part of their case.

The plaintiffs consist of about a dozen survivors and family members of workers who died in the 2005 explosion at BP’s largest refinery in the US, which killed 15 workers and injured 170.

BP had turned down a request from Brent Coon, the plaintiffs’ lawyer, to question Lord Browne, saying that he had “no unique knowledge of the incident that is not available from other people within BP”.

Michael Hoffman, BP’s group vice-president for global refining, who reports to Mr Manzoni, has already answered questions from the plantiffs as part of the pre-trial discovery process, under which lawyers have legal authority to collect evidence they believe is relevent to their case from the defendents.

BP is likely to appeal against the judge’s ruling to the Texas State Supreme court.

If the judge’s order against BP stands, the plantiffs’ lawyers would be likely to question Lord Browne under oath in London.

He is unlikely to be required to appear in person in the forthcoming jury trial, which is due to start on September 18, although his answers could be cited by the plantiffs.

BP has broadly accepted responsibility for the explosion in March, 2005, and has reached settlements with many of the victims. The attorneys who have instead sought to seek damages through a jury trial in the Texas courts claim that the accident resulted from “gross negligence” at BP.

The US Department of Labor found more than 300 health and safety violations at the refinery and fined BP a maximum allowable $21m before referring the explosion to the Justice Department for possible criminal action.

A federal grand jury is debating whether to bring criminal charges against BP or its executives.