New data and information surfacing about the claims administrator for the Gulf oil spill settlement, Patrick Juneau, raise serious questions about whether he merits serving in this role. The new allegations also reinforce the notion of a legal system that’s gone awry.
Since being tapped to oversee settlement claims in the aftermath of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in 2012, Juneau has presided over several high profile scandals. From the systemic payment of questionable claims, to allegations of expediting claims for friendly lawyers, and more allegations of money laundering and other unethical behavior that caused several of his top officials to resign, it is clear Juneau’s tenure with the Court Supervised Settlement Program has been marked by controversy.
We now learn from a BP filing that Juneau may have had a disqualifying conflict of interest at the time he was appointed to serve as a special master in the case. Read more...