First BP Witness Takes Stand Monday

BP is expected to call its first witness Monday at a trial to determine how much more money in damages may be paid out from the well blowout in the Gulf of Mexico.

The Associated Press is reporting that Halliburton, BP's cement contractor on the Deepwater Horizon drilling project, just rested its case. This next phase of the trial is expected to last six weeks.

U.S. District Judge Carl Barbier is hearing the testimony in the trial in New Orleans. The trial is to detail reasons for, and assign blame in, the disaster.

In Feburary, the Tampa Bay Times detailed the number of legal claims piling up against BP in Florida. The city of Tampa is seeking $50 million in damages to cover past and future losses. Pinellas County beach communities are seeking $12 million in damages.

due to the linger effects of the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill. The grant money will go to the Convention and Visitor's Bureau.

BP Oil opened its first claims office in Clearwater in 2010. It was the first BP claims office to open in the Tampa Bay area.

So far 34,000 Florida businesses and individuals have been approved to receive a total of $323 million.

The deadline to file a claim is April 2014, according to the PR Newswire, which reported that "funds established from the BP oil spill settlement are available to businesses in almost every industry ranging from “mom and pop” housekeeping services to a retail stores."

Attorneys, such as Michael A. Ziegler of Cleawater, are actively reaching out to businesses to inform them of the process and how to file. Ziegler's law office assists claimants under the settlement. Ziegler even dedicates a web page to inform people how to file claims.

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