Bondi
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (Legal Newsline) - Florida Gov. Rick Scott says his state will not join other Gulf Coast states in a federal lawsuit against Transocean over last year's oil spill.
Scott made the announcement on Tuesday, the Miami Herald reported.
It's been a year since the explosion and fire that occurred on Transocean's drilling rig Deepwater Horizon, licensed to BP. The disaster killed 11 workers and resulted in the largest offshore spill in U.S. history.
Wednesday -- the anniversary of the disaster -- was the last day Florida could join Alabama, Louisiana and about 800 other plaintiffs in the federal lawsuit.
Anyone who suffered an injury or financial loss because of the spill can join, but claims must be filed by Wednesday.
Instead of joining the federal lawsuit, Florida says it will file a claim against BP directly.
Attorney General Pam Bondi's office told the Herald that doing so will save the state money and mean a quicker resolution.
From Legal Newsline: Reach Jessica Karmasek by e-mail at jessica@legalnewsline.com.