Next Phase Of Gulf Oil Spill Trial Set For 2015

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — A federal judge has set a tentative trial date next year to consider federal Clean Water Act penalties that BP could face for the millions of gallons of oil that spilled into the Gulf of Mexico after the 2010 Deepwater Horizon rig explosion.

U.S. District Court Judge Carl Barbier on Friday set Jan. 20 for the trial — the third phase of a proceeding arising from the federal government's claims against BP and its contractors. Earlier phases dealt with causes of the disaster and the amount of oil that spewed into Gulf waters.

Barbier has not yet ruled on the amount spilled or on whether BP and others acted with gross negligence that led to the blowout — both issues that will figure into Clean Water Act penalties.