Goldfarb Branham Law Firm Named Lead Counsel For BP Derivative Lawsuits in Texas

Online, September 22, 2010 (Newswire.com) - HOUSTON - The Dallas-based litigation firm of Goldfarb Branham LLP has been appointed sole lead counsel in the consolidated shareholder derivative lawsuits filed in Houston against BP officers and directors. The lawsuits say misconduct by those officers and directors -- before and after the Deepwater Horizon oil spill -- led to billions of dollars in damages.

Harris County District Judge William Burke Jr. ordered three related actions, including Raymond Vallerga v. Anthony Hayward, et al., filed by Goldfarb Branham, consolidated into "In re BP Shareholder Derivative Litigation" on September 21. In June, Vallerga was the first such case filed in Texas.

In the Vallerga lawsuit, the shareholder plaintiffs allege that BP's board and specific officers, including CEO Tony Hayward, repeatedly violated the law, breached fiduciary duty, abused control, and mismanaged and wasted corporate assets, culminating with the April 20 explosion on the Deepwater Horizon oil rig. The plaintiffs say BP's reckless safety record in the United States and continued misrepresentations of the severity of the spill by company executives caused further harm. Currently, BP stock is selling for just over half of its value prior to the oil spill.

Attorneys for the plaintiffs say the case rightfully belongs in the Harris County courts.

"These cases are focused on BP's reckless safety record and the lack of internal controls at the company," says Hamilton Lindley of Goldfarb Branham. "Harris County is where this wrongdoing occurred. BP holds most of its assets in Harris County, the current CEO resides here, and it is where most of the company's workers are employed. Harris County is where the decisions were made and Harris County is where these shareholders, standing in the shoes of the corporation, want to hold the board accountable for their actions."

Goldfarb Branham provides nimble, creative, and effective counsel at all stages of litigation. The firm handles complex commercial litigation throughout Texas and across the nation.