Louisiana Revised Statutes 30:2479 – Limitation of liability
Terms Used In Louisiana Revised Statutes 30:2479
- Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
- Discharge: means the placing, releasing, spilling, percolating, draining, pumping, leaking, seeping, emitting, or other escaping of pollutants into the air, waters, subsurface water, or ground as the result of a prior act or omission; or the placing of pollutants into pits, drums, barrels, or similar containers under conditions and circumstances that leaking, seeping, draining, or escaping of the pollutants can be reasonably anticipated. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 30:2004
- Facility: means a pollution source or any public or private property or facility where an activity is conducted which is required to be regulated under this Subtitle and which does or has the potential to do any of the following:
(a) Emit air contaminants into the atmosphere. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 30:2004
- Person: means any individual, municipality, public or private corporation, partnership, firm, the United States Government, and any agent or subdivision thereof or any other juridical person, which shall include, but not be limited to, trusts, joint stock companies, associations, the state of Louisiana, political subdivisions of the state of Louisiana, commissions, and interstate bodies. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 30:2004
- Secretary: means the secretary of the Department of Environmental Quality. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 30:2004
- Violation: means a failure to comply with the requirements of this Subtitle, the rules issued under this Subtitle, and conditions of permits under this Subtitle. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 30:2004
A. The total of the liability of a responsible party for all damages and removal costs shall not exceed the following:
(1) For a tank vessel, the greater of:
(a) One thousand two hundred dollars per gross ton; or
(b)(i) In the case of a vessel greater than three thousand gross tons, ten million dollars.
(ii) In the case of a vessel of three thousand gross tons or less, two million dollars.
(2) For any other vessel, six hundred dollars per gross ton or five hundred thousand dollars, whichever is greater.
(3) For an offshore facility except a deepwater port, the total of all removal costs plus seventy-five million dollars.
(4)(i) For any onshore facility or a deepwater port, three hundred fifty million dollars; provided that, for onshore facilities, where the president of the United States, in accordance with Section 1004(d)(1) of the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (P.L. 101-380), has established a limitation of less than three hundred fifty million dollars, the limitation of liability provided under this Paragraph shall be the limitation of liability established by the president of the United States.
(ii) Provided that for a deepwater port, where the secretary designated by Section 1004(d)(2)(C) of the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (P.L. 101-380) has established a limitation of less than three hundred fifty million dollars, in accordance with Section 1004(d)(2)(C) of the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (P.L. 101-380), the limitation of liability under this Paragraph shall be the limitation of liability established by the secretary.
B.(1) For the purposes of determining the responsible party and applying this Chapter, and except as provided in Paragraph (2) of this Subsection, a mobile offshore drilling unit which is being used as an offshore facility is deemed to be a tank vessel with respect to the discharge, or substantial threat of discharge, of oil on or above the surface of the water.
(2) To the extent that removal costs and damages from any incident described in Paragraph (1) of this Subsection exceed the amount for which a responsible party is liable, as that amount may be limited under La. Rev. Stat. 30:2479(A)(1), the mobile offshore drilling unit is deemed to be an offshore facility. For the purposes of applying La. Rev. Stat. 30:2479(A)(3) the amount specified by that provision shall be reduced by the amount for which the responsible party is liable under La. Rev. Stat. 30:2479(A)(1).
C.(1) The limits of liability provided for in this Section do not apply if the incident was primarily caused by gross negligence or willful misconduct of, or the violation of an applicable federal, state, or local safety, construction, or operating regulation by the responsible party, an agent or employee of the responsible party, or a person acting pursuant to a contractual relationship with the responsible party, except where the sole contractual arrangement arises in connection with carriage by a common carrier by rail.
(2) The limits of liability provided for in this Section do not apply if the responsible party fails or refuses:
(a) To report the incident as required by law and the responsible party knows or has reason to know of the incident; or
(b) To provide all reasonable cooperation and assistance requested by a responsible state or federal official in connection with removal activities.
Acts 1991, 1st Ex. Sess., No. 7, §1, eff. April 23, 1991.