Running Aground in a Sea of Complex Litigation: A Case Comment on the Exxon Valdez Litigation

Abstract

I. INTRODUCTION Oil spills leave more than an environmental mess in their wake. They usually leave a mess of litigants and court dockets jammed with lawsuits filed by private and public parties, making claims for damages based upon a myriad of theories of liability.(1) On March 23, 1989, the supertanker Exxon Valdez slowly left Valdez, Alaska carrying 53 million gallons of crude oil. Its next planned stop was Long Beach, California.(2) The ship traveled at a speed of no more than six knots during the first leg of its journey because there were small islands, reefs and, most likely, ice ahead. Captain Joseph Hazelwood stood on the bridge of the ship with the third mate Gregory Cousins. As the ship began making its way toward Prince William Sound, Hazelwood left to go to his office to do paperwork after telling Cousins to call if he needed anything.(3) Exxon's manual dictated that the captain had to be on the bridge whenever conditions present a potential threat to the vessel such as passing in the vicinity of shoals, rocks or other hazards presenting any threat to safe navigation.(4) A short time later, Hazelwood received a call that there was ice ahead and that they would need to maneuver around it. Hazelwood returned to the bridge, studied the ice reports, and ordered the helmsman to change course. Hazelwood then gave instructions to Cousins regarding the next turn the Exxon Valdez would need to make. Hazelwood left the bridge again and returned to his office down below.(5) While Hazelwood did paperwork, Cousins went into the chart room to look at the map, leaving the helmsman alone on the bridge. Suddenly, the lookout sounded an alarm and cried that the flashing red buoy marking Bligh Reef could be seen off the starboard when it was supposed to be on the port side. Cousins quickly ordered a turn. However, the huge ship could not turn fast enough. Cousins called Hazelwood in his office and told the captain, We're in serious trouble.(6) Just after midnight, the Exxon Valdez ran aground on Bligh Reef tearing open the hull of the ship. Bligh Reef was a well-known navigational hazard in Prince William Sound and clearly marked on the ship's navigating charts. The damage caused the ship to gush oil into the Sound at a rate of 200,000 gallons a minute. At the time, Prince William Sound was regarded as of the most pristine and diverse ecological systems in the world.(7) Chief Warrant Officer Mark Delozier of the Coast Guard was called out to the Exxon Valdez. When he arrived, he spoke to Hazelwood. While talking to Hazelwood, Delozier could smell the odor of alcohol. He ordered Hazelwood and some of the crewmembers to be tested for alcohol. It would later be discovered that Hazelwood spent much of the previous afternoon in a bar. Due to numerous delays, however, Hazelwood's blood sample was taken nearly eleven hours after the grounding. Although the authenticity of the samples was later challenged in trial, the test revealed that Hazelwood's blood alcohol level was .061 eleven hours after the accident. Federal law prohibits a crewmember from operating a vessel if his blood alcohol level is over .04.(8) Exxon fired Captain Hazelwood immediately.(9) Eleven million gallons of oil from the damaged hull poured out and eventually spread over 2,592 miles of coastline.(10) It has been called the worst environmental disaster in United States history.(11) The oil spill caused the death of more wildlife than any other single human catastrophe. More than 250,000 seabirds, 3,500 otters and hundreds of bald eagles were killed.(12) Additionally, the spill had an extensive impact on almost all levels of life in Alaska. Nearly 60,000 Alaskans claimed the oil spill impacted their lives.(13) No one knows what the long-term effects of the oil spill will be. What is certain is that this spill sparked the beginning of one of America's largest and most complex litigation in history that would involve thousands of people, hundreds of lawyers and years of court battles. …