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BP's Browne faces new deposition



By Upstream staff 

A second US judge today ordered BP group chief executive John Browne to give a deposition in a lawsuit arising from a 2005 refinery explosion in Texas.

Texas state District Judge Susan Criss ruled that Browne must submit to depositions because of interviews he had given indicating he may have valuable information and opinions about the 2005 Texas City refinery blast that killed 15, Reuters reported.

Browne previously claimed he had nothing to add to the testimony of lower-ranking BP officials.

Earlier this week, settlements announced in 114 cases related to the refinery blast appeared to make a deposition by Browne unlikely. Among those cases was one in which a federal judge had ordered his deposition.

The ruling by Criss revives plans for Browne's deposition, however, since it relates to an unsettled lawsuit filed by survivors of a husband and wife killed in the accident. It is slated to go to trial on 8 November.

About 1000 lawsuits were filed in the wake of the blast, and BP has settled most of them, a company spokesman said.


Wednesday, 11 October, 2006, 18:23 GMT  | last updated: Wednesday, 11 October, 2006, 18:23 GMT

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