Phase two of BP trial to be shorter than phase one

NEW ORLEANS – Phase two of the BP oil spill trial has been set to begin Sept. 30 and will last through much of October.

In a filing released Aug. 22, U. S. District Judge Carl Barbier set the second phase of the trial to last for 16 courtroom days. 

The first phase of the trial began on Feb. 25 and went on for eight weeks. That phase focused on the causes of the Deepwater Horizon oil platform explosion that began the 2010 Gulf oil spill which eventually leaked an estimated 4.9 million barrels of oil in the largest oil spill ever recorded.

The second phase of trial will be based on the government’s estimate of the amount of oil leaked, which BP’s attorneys claim is faulty.

Initially set to begin on Sept. 16, the second phase of the trial was pushed back two weeks after both BP and plaintiffs’ attorneys asked for more time for preparation.