EXXON . . . PAYING FOR ITS SPILL
Exxon agreed to pay $20 million to 3,500 Alaska Natives who claimed losses as a result of the 1989 oil spill in Prince William Sound. This is the first time individuals have been awarded money in connection with the spill, but it may be just the tip of the liability iceberg for the multibillion-dollar corporation. Within days, a lawsuit filed by fishermen claiming $895 million from the company will be decided. What to watch for: a massive $15 billion claim for punitive damages against Exxon, likely to be brought by nearly everyone who claims to have been affected by the spill. The company seems to be weathering the action. Its stock actually rose today, slightly.
Most Popular »
- How Cash Keeps Poor People Poor
- E.T. Turns 30: 10 Things You Didn't Know About Our Favorite Extraterrestrial
- 15-Year-Old Creates Test for Pancreatic Cancer
- Nevada Ghosts: Rare Photos From an A-Bomb Test
- Fourth Flesh-Eating-Bacteria Case Confirmed in Georgia, Possible Fifth
- Euro Crisis: Why A Greek Exit Could Be Much Worse Than Expected
- 10 Dangerous Products You Might Have in Your Home
- Could a Fertility Gene Discovery Lead to New Male Contraception?
- Star Wars Turns 35: How TIME Covered the Film Phenomenon
- Obama Stumbles? Why the President's Right to Talk About Bain
- Researchers Probe the Potential Health Benefits of Palm Oil
- A Visit with Turkey's Controversial Religious Movement
- Feeding the Planet Without Destroying It
- Bubble on the Potomac
- Falcon's Liftoff: How a Private Firm Could Change Space Exploration
- The Fatal Flight of the Superjet 100: Why Did It Slam Into a Mountain?
- Learning That Works
- The Man Who Remade Motherhood
- Bibi's Choice
- Seoul: 10 Things to Do
More News from Our Partners
Top Stories on TIME.com
Quotes of the Day »
RAY KELLY, New York City Police Commissioner, on the arrest of a New Jersey man in one of the nation's most baffling missing-children cases, the disappearance more than three decades ago of 6-year-old Etan Patz.
