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PG&E Still Expecting Settlements of San Bruno Cases
A judge’s pretrial decision this week to allow punitive damages in the consolidated civil legal cases filed against Pacific Gas and Electric Co. (PG&E) following the San Bruno, CA, pipeline explosion two years ago does not lessen the chances of a settlement, a PG&E spokesperson told NGI Thursday.
Like three major enforcement cases at the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) now being negotiated by PG&E and the parties, the civil litigation can still be settled without a long court battle, said the spokesperson, noting that 70 settlements already have been reached in wrongful death lawsuits tied to the explosion, which killed eight people in September 2010.
PG&E CEO Anthony Earley has estimated that the San Francisco-based combination utility and its holding company will ultimately pay between $1 billion and $2 billion in settlements (see Daily GPI, Sept. 4). Current estimates on third-party liability claims could amount to $600 million.
Last Tuesday, Judge Steven Dylina in the San Mateo Superior Court near San Bruno, ruled against PG&E’s attempt to take punitive damages off the table and only allow compensatory damages. Thus, both can be considered if the consolidated cases numbering more than 300 go to trial.
“The ruling was about several things, but primarily the question of whether to allow punitive damages,” said the utility spokesperson. She added that there is no good estimate on the utility’s overall exposure in the civil cases. A source familiar with the case and PG&E’s position said Dylina has made it clear he would like to see the majority of the pending cases settled, and the utility continues to stress that goal.
Separately, PG&E continues to seek a settlement in the three pending CPUC enforcement cases, although the process was dealt a blow late last month when Sen. George Mitchell’s role as a mediator was rejected by some of the parties (see Daily GPI, Oct. 29). Any ultimate payout from PG&E on those cases would be made to California’s state General Fund, not individuals or groups.
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