US court cuts Exxon Valdez payout
Updated
America's highest court has dramatically slashed the record damages payout that was ordered after the Exxon Valdez oil spill off Alaska 19 years ago.
Our Washington Correspondent Kim Landers reports that the US Supreme Court has ruled that the $US2.5 billion in punitive damages awarded to 32,000 fishermen and property owners was excessive.
In a five-three vote, the judges have decided that Exxon Mobil only needs to pay $500 million, which is the same figure as the compensation already awarded.
The Exxon Valdez supertanker ran aground in Alaska's Prince William sound in 1989, spilling more than 40-million litres of crude oil into the water, closing fisheries and killing hundreds of thousands of birds and marine animals.
It was the worst oil spill in US history.
