• To discuss spill related damage, please call 1-800-440-0858
• To report oiled shoreline or request volunteer information, please call 1-866-448-5816
• To report oiled wildlife, please call 1-866-557-1401 and leave a message. Messages will be checked hourly.

• From the standpoint of liability and recovering damages, this appears to be a relatively complicated situation.  It is compounded by the fact that it is most likely covered under the rules of maritime law.  Therefore, any attorney with whom your business contracts with regard to filing damage claims as a result of the oil spill should be familiar with this specialty area of law.
  
• One of the factors complicating any recovery by affected businesses may be a maritime act put into place following the Exxon Valdez spill.  This act limits the total liability of the oil company involved in such a spill to $75 million.  It is unclear at this time whether this maritime act will apply to this case and the application will likely be resolved in federal court.  It may be helpful to know that news sources are reporting that Congress is considering alternative action which may increase the oil company's liability.  However, this too, will likely be heard in federal court in the months to come.
  
• At the present time there is a committee of attorneys in the New Orleans area handling claims arising out of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. While DEMA does not have a direct relationship with this committee or the involved attorneys, and does not receive any remuneration for referral, one of the members of this committee has stepped forward through DEMA's business attorney to offer assistance and we gladly pass this information along as a service to our members.
  
  Mr. Gerald Meunier, who is also one of the lead counsel members on the federal case filed in the Eastern District of Louisiana, has considerable experience in this area of law, and has agreed to interface with any DEMA members who want to explore the possibility of a claim, and where they might stand in terms of the priorities of claim that the court will set up.  Mr. Meunier's contact information is:

Gerald E. Meunier
Gainsburgh, Benjamin, David, Meunier & Warshauer
2800 Energy Center, 110 Poydras Street
New Orleans, Louisiana 70163-2800
Telephone:  (504) 522-2304

 

Any possible claimants from the dive industry should contact Mr. Meunier's office directly, and should mention that they have been referred by DEMA. There will be two additional lawyers in the firm (Steven Dittman and Michael Ecuyer) who can also help evaluate any claims and make recommendations about joining the on-going litigation with other businesses in the area, and can discuss costs and other logistics.