Exxon Mobil Comments On Valdez Ninth Circuit Court Decision

January 11, 2002 at 6:36 PM EST
IRVING, Texas, Jan 11, 2002 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Exxon Mobil Corporation today confirmed that it has been advised by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals that the plaintiffs' motion for a rehearing by the full Ninth Circuit Court has been denied. ExxonMobil Chairman Lee Raymond noted November 7, 2001, that the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals confirmed the company's position that the $5 billion punitive damage award related to the Exxon Valdez accident was excessive.

Raymond said the Valdez oil spill was a tragic accident that ExxonMobil deeply regrets.

Raymond added that the company took immediate responsibility for the spill, cleaned it up, and voluntarily compensated those who claimed direct damages.

The appeals court decision sends the case back to the federal court in Anchorage, Alaska, with orders to reduce the award to an amount consistent with constitutional limits.

ExxonMobil spent $2.2 billion on the spill cleanup, continuing the effort from 1989 until 1992 when both the State of Alaska and the U.S. Coast Guard declared the cleanup complete.

ExxonMobil also voluntarily began paying damage claims immediately after the accident to fully compensate those directly damaged by the spill. More than 11,000 people and businesses received more than $300 million in compensation. An Anchorage jury in 1994 determined that actual damages totaled $287 million and rejected the plaintiffs' claims for additional compensatory damages. 

CONTACT:          Exxon Mobil Corporation
                  Tom Cirigliano, 972-444-1109

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