The Exxon Valdez spill was in 1989, they still, 21 years later, have not paid the [full] amount awarded in court (a mere $500 million) to those affected and in fact over 8000 people have died while waiting for compensation. Exxon is still in appeals court

Back on April 30, CAP's Dan Weiss wrote, "BP should be required to place its first quarter profit of $5.6 billion in an escrow account" (see "Held up without a gun").  The money would cover claims by those whose livelihoods have been harmed by the disaster and would help pay for quicker action on cleanup.

Some in the UK now claim, "BP's escrow solution is a dangerous idea."  What's dangerous is expecting a major oil company to make timely payments.  CAP's Weiss and Susan Lyon explained...