Mobile attorney Robert Cunningham named to committee overseeing oil spill lawsuits against BP

Katherine Sayre, Press-Register

Press Register file Mobile attorney Robert T. Cunningham has been named to a plaintiffs' committee managing federal lawsuits against BP PLC over the Gulf of Mexico oil spill.

MOBILE, Alabama -- Mobile attorney Robert T. Cunningham has been chosen to work on a plaintiffs’ committee managing hundreds of federal lawsuits against BP PLC stemming from the Gulf of Mexico oil spill.

Cunningham, senior partner of Cunningham Bounds LLC, is one of 15 lawyers who will manage lawsuits filed by restaurant owners, Gulf Coast states, commercial fishermen, beachside condominium owners and others affected by the spill.

The goal is “to see that everyone is made whole as a result of this disaster,” Cunningham said.

The Deepwater Horizon rig exploded on April 20, killing 11 workers and opening a gusher that spilled oil for nearly 3 months. Since the explosion, hundreds of lawsuits against BP and other companies involved in the drilling have been filed in court.

The lawsuits — claiming wrongful death, personal injury, environmental damages and loss of income and tax revenue — have been consolidated in U.S. District Judge Carl Barbier’s courtroom in New Orleans.

The 15-member panel, known as the plaintiffs’ steering committee, will gather evidence and manage the cases during the pretrial stages.

A BP spokesman declined to comment on any pending litigation.

Cunningham was the only attorney from Alabama’s Gulf Coast selected by the judge. The attorneys work for one-year terms. More than 100 lawyers applied for the job.

The other committee members are based in New Orleans, Baton Rouge, Denham Springs, Belle Chasse, Lake Charles in Louisiana; Pensacola and Coral Gables in Florida; Norfolk, Va.; Jackson, Miss.; Dallas; Houston; San Francisco; New York and Montgomery.

Cunningham said it’s unclear whether the $20 billion compensation fund set up by BP will fully repay all of the damages, and the litigation will hopefully address what remains.

“It’s a tremendous responsibility that my firm and I take very seriously,” he said.

John Carroll, dean of Samford University’s Cumberland School of Law in Birmingham, said it’s not unusual for the judge overseeing consolidated litigation to set a few cases for trial first to create a benchmark for the possible outcomes.

“It’s certainly a massive piece of litigation,” Carroll said. “The steering committee really controls the litigation.”

Related topics: BP , lawsuits , oil spill , Robert Cunningham

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