NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Plaintiffs' attorneys who brokered a multibillion-dollar settlement with BP following the company's 2010 Gulf oil spill have asked a federal appeals court to uphold a judge's approval of the deal.

In a court filing Tuesday, the private lawyers say only a "paltry few objectors" have raised the "narrowest of concerns" about the settlement that U.S. District Judge Carl Barbier approved in December 2012.

On Friday, BP attorneys argued that a three-judge panel of the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals should overturn Barbier's approval order if the company's separate appeal of more recent rulings on settlement terms is unsuccessful.

A court-supervised claims administrator has made more than $4.5 billion in settlement offers to more than 55,000 Gulf Coast businesses and residents who claim the spill cost them money.

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