The Certified Fisher Class Definition
You are a Fisher Class Member if you are a person or business who owned or worked on a vessel that was in operation as of May 19, 2015 and that: (1) landed any commercial seafood in California Department of Fish & Wildlife (“CDFW”) fishing blocks 654, 655, or 656; or (2) landed any commercial seafood, except groundfish or highly migratory species (as defined by the CDFW and the Pacific Fishery Management Council), in CDFW fishing blocks 651-656, 664-670, 678-686, 701-707, 718-726, 739-746, 760-765, or 806-809; from May 19, 2010 to May 19, 2015, inclusive; or if you are a person or business in operation as of May 19, 2015 who purchased such commercial seafood directly from the Commercial Fishers and re-sold it at the retail or wholesale level.
The Certified Property Class Definition
You are a Property Class Member if you owned or leased residential beachfront property or property with a private easement to a beach where oil from the 2015 Santa Barbara oil spill washed up and the oiling was categorized as heavy, moderate, or light. You can find out if your property is included by going to www.plainsoilspill.com/long-form-notice-real-property-class, where a list of impacted properties is posted.
Settlement terms
A Settlement has now been reached on behalf of members of the Fisher Class and Property Class previously certified by this Court. The Settlement, if approved by the Court, will resolve all remaining claims in the class action litigation pending in the United States District Court for the Central District of California. The Fisher Class Settlement is $184 million, and the Property Class Settlement is $46 million, inclusive of attorneys’ fees and costs.
For more information about the Settlement, please go to www.PlainsOilSpill.com.
The Settlement resulted in the creation of two cash settlement funds of $184,000,000 (the “Fisher Class Settlement Amount”) and $46,000,000 (“the Property Class Settlement Amount”), together with any interest earned thereon, the “Fisher Class Common Fund” and “Property Class Common Fund,” respectively. Each of the common funds less (a) any Taxes and Tax Expenses; (b) any Notice and Administration Expenses; and (c) any attorneys’ fees and costs and any service awards to Class Representatives in connection with their representation of the Class, awarded by the Court (the “Net Settlement Funds”), will be distributed to eligible Class Members pursuant to a proposed plan of distribution (“Plan of Distribution”).
On May 25, 2022, the Honorable Phillip S. Gutierrez granted preliminary approval of the proposed settlement to resolve all claims in the Andrews v. Plains litigation. JND Settlement Administration was appointed to provide notice to members of the settlement class and to oversee the claims process and the distribution of settlement funds and services to class members. The settlement website is accessible at www.plainsoilspillsettlement.com. Notice to class members was fully completed in accordance with the Preliminary Approval Order.
Final Approval of the Settlement was granted on September 20, 2022.
Grey Fox Case Overview
On May 5, 2016, Cappello & Noël LLP, Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein LLP and Keller Rohrback LLP filed a class action lawsuit against Plains All American Pipeline L.P. and Plains Pipeline L.P. (“Defendants”) on behalf of the property owners stemming from the Plains pipeline rupture in Santa Barbara on May 19, 2015.
In 1991, Celeron Pipeline Company of California (predecessor to Plains All American Pipeline), built pipelines on 130 miles of private property to transport crude oil and other liquids from the California coast to inland refinery markets in California. At the time, property owners signed easement contracts allowing Lines 901 and 903 pipelines to be built on their property with the easement contracts stating the pipeline owners would maintain, operate and repair the pipeline as needed.
One year after the May 19, 2015 oil spill, the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (“PHMSA”) concluded that the cause of the rupture was integrity management failures by its then-owner, Plains.
Grey Fox Case Status - Settlement
On May 1, 2024, nine years after a pipeline ruptured along the Santa Barbara coastline spilling oil onto private property, Refugio State Beach and into the Pacific Ocean, U.S. District Court Judge Philip Gutierrez granted preliminary approval of a $70 million class action settlement to property owners to resolve all outstanding class claims.
The Settlement class consists of private owners of 183 class properties. The owner of each of the class properties is proposed to receive at least $50,000, with average payments of $230,000.
In addition, Sable Offshore Corp., the current pipeline owner, agrees that the ruptured pipeline will not be replaced with a second, new pipeline system without first renewing easement agreements and that Sable agrees to safely operate the pipeline under a Federal Consent Decree requiring the defendant to follow requirements for pipeline maintenance and operation under federal regulations. Sable also agrees to take necessary steps to install automatic shutoff valves on the pipeline. In addition, Sable must use the best available safety technologies to restart the pipeline. In exchange, the class agrees that the settling parties may repair and re-open the pipeline and record notice of easement clarifications.
Class members will receive direct mail notice of the settlement. A settlement website and toll-free number will be created to provide settlement details. A fairness hearing is set for September 13, 2024 to determine whether the Settlement should receive final approval. Class members have up to 15 days before the hearing to file a response to the settlement approval.
For more information please contact attorneys Juli Farris, Matt Preusch or Laura Gerber at (800) 776-6044 or via email at [email protected]