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Encouraging news for the families of the 11 men killed on board the Deepwater Horizon.
Yesterday, July 1, 2010, the House of Representatives voted to pass H.R. 5503, the Securing Protections for the Injured from Limitations on Liability (or “SPILL”) Act. Once its partner bill, S.B. 3463, is passed in the Senate, the SPILL Act will amend the antiquated Death on the High Seas Act of 1920. It will allow the families of workers killed on the Deepwater Horizon rig to recover non-economic damages, rather than only strictly economic ones, from those responsible for the tragedy.
The bill is facing tough resistance from the cruise line industry, among others, since as it stands currently, it would also hold cruise lines far more accountable for deaths of passengers and crew members in which the cruise line was found negligent.
For more information about the underlying issues, please see our previous posting: “Should a Death at Sea Matter Less than a Death on Land?“
