Professor Frank Comments for Christian Science Monitor on $4.5 Billion BP Fine
Professor of Environmental Practice Richard Frank commented for the Christian Science Monitor on the $4.5 billion in fines British Petroleum will pay in connection with the 2010 spill that released five million barrels of oil into the Gulf of Mexico and caused 11 deaths. The criminal penalty is the largest of its kind in U.S. history.
"It would appear the Justice Department was appropriately aggressive in pursuing and negotiating this," Frank said. "One can always argue for greater fines, but these are pretty big numbers, and the fact that there's a felony conviction on record against this corporation is significant."
Frank, a 1974 graduate of King Hall, is a leader in the field of environmental law and the founding Director of the California Environmental Law and Policy Center at UC Davis School of Law.